Always and Never
by Cassie08
Summary: PostCasino Royale. How long will it take James to get over Vesper, and when he does, will he find who is right for him? Also, ever wonder who the other Double 'O's are? You're about to find out.
1. Prologue

**Profiles**

Kate's POV

Ice blue eyes hidden behind dark sunglasses, sandy blonde hair, and a license to kill… what name comes to mind? James Bond, right? Wrong. Though most people know my brother, few realize that he even has a sister. I suppose you hear more about the reckless double 'O's rather then the higher up ones.  
I'm 005, Kate Bond, though our new agents (008 and 009) enjoy calling me by my hair color. Like my brother, I have ice blue eyes that get lighter or darker by my emotions and sandy blonde hair that is layered and comes to my shoulders. I'm 22, four years younger then James and it drives him crazy that I'm so much younger than him and I became a double 'O' first… I'll never let him forget that.  
Other then my brother, the only double 'O' that I get a long with is 006, Snapdragon or Snaps. She and I just seem to get a long.  
There's a lot of "Double 'O' Drama"; I can't stand 009(Dyna Taylor), who started the whole Blonde thing. Dyna likes James, who hates her and 008(Jack Claney). Jack likes Dyna, who also hates 006(Snaps), who is my best friend… yeah, drama…  
Each double 'O', aside from normal skills, has something that they excel in. I'm a silent assassin, basically if we need someone killed and don't want to draw attention I'm sent. Snaps is the best sniper, she can hit anything from a great distance. James is good at "sending messages" (kills that need to be seen or noticed.). Jack… I'm not really sure what he does… and Dyna is a bomb expert, this is why I think she obtained double 'O' status because none of the rest of us have had formal training with bombs, just basic.  
You may be wondering where 001 – 004 are now. Well, 001 is our leader, M. 002, Thomas Oleson, died before my time. 003, William Webster, is now the man who makes all of our gadgets, we all call him Web (he just turned 56). 004, Ripley Jones (58), is in charge of our arsenal of guns.

Snaps' POV

My name is Snapdragon Madison. No, I'm not a rapper, and no, I don't curse my parents for giving me that name. It's this simple, my close friends call me Snaps, my enemies call me Madison, which makes me feel like the Mermaid in that old Tom Hanks movie.

I am a Double 'O' agent for MI6, the British government intelligence system. Being a double 'O' means I have a license to kill, and I'm not afraid to use it. My best friend, also a Double 'O', is Kate Bond. We are the exact same age (as in the exact same birthday), but she became a Double 'O' around five months before me, making her 005 and me 006. Yes, we came before James Bond, and we've never let him forget it, either.

He is, or course, Kate's older brother, by four years, and he and I had had an…interesting relationship.

Flashback

I was walking into MI6 to speak to M about becoming an agent. I had on a pair of dark blue sunglasses, khaki cargo pants, and yellow button up. I met James on his way out and he introduced himself. I knew immediately that he was Kate's brother. He asked my name, and I told him.

"Snapdragon? Your parents must have gotten-"

"Don't even start on the name. I like my name, I've always thought it unique and self-defining."

"But, I-"

"I've also always promised myself never to name any children I may have something normal and commonplace, like…James, for instance."

He smirked at me then, and I had noticed his ice blue eyes for the first time. Whether he was looking at me with admiration or annoyance, I didn't know.

"Good evening, Mr. Bond."

End Flashback

Since then, I've become closer with James, though it is our extreme enjoyment to torture one another and bet our lives on Poker (I usually win). I've found myself daydreaming about him lately, though, flirting with him intentionally and worrying about how I look around him. He's always been so kind to me (despite our bickering) and we have a great many things in common.

It has not taken me long to realize that I'm falling in love with James Bond

All great epics begin and end with love, and so is the case with this one.


	2. Chapter 1 Home Again

Kate's POV

'Home again.' I thought as I stepped out of the elevator and headed down the hall to my room at headquarters, which was more like an apartment.

I had just reported to M about my mission last night, kill some guy I didn't know and keep it quiet. Easy. I always loved night kills, but I paid for it the next morning. (Like now)

I pulled out my keys and stuck my apartment key in the lock, but I found it was already unlocked. I slowly pulled the door open as I took my gun from my side. This wouldn't be the first time someone would have tried to kill a Double 'O' from the inside.

Carefully, I entered the room and quickly closed the door and pointed my gun at…

"James!" I yelled, enraged at my brother as I l9owered my gun. "Bloody hell, I could've killed you!"

"I had to make sure my favorite little sister got back alive." He said, smirking.

I hit him in the arm with all my might…not much, seeing as I was so sleepy. "I'm your only sister and that had to be one of the easiest kills of my life1"

"Good. I had a time getting mine."

"Well, you must have gotten him anyway. When did you get back?"

"About an hour after you left."

"Oh, well, can't you find something better to do than bother me until tomorrow? It's 2:45 in the morning!"

"Well… He said, as if he was really thinking on the matter. "I suppose I could go play poker with Snaps…"

"Sounds like a plan!" I said, and started pushing him out the door, when I had finally gotten him into the hallway, "She's just gonna hand you your ass." Then, I shut the door.

"Nice to have you back too, sis." I heard him mumble before walking away.

I laughed softly as I unpacked, then headed for my shower with my most comfortable P.J's.

After my shower, I climbed into my bed. I'd always loved my bed here at headquarters, it just smelled like 'home' I guess. I looked over at the clock on my nightstand. 3:05AM.

'Bloody hell!' I thought as I fell asleep.


	3. Chapter 2 Homecoming

Snaps' POV

I walked into the MI6 base, my eyes heavy and head throbbing. It was around 2:00 in the morning, and I was just returning from a sniper assignment. I'd tailed the target for nearly four hours before finally finding a base to get rid of him from.

The long barreled silent R47 with sniper scope rested in its case, which bumped against my knee as I walked, my tennis shoes making no noise on the tile floor beneath my feet. I yawned slightly, then shook it off, my layered dark brown hair brushing my neck in its ponytail.

Turning right, the bright light changed to dim blue in the narrow hall, meaning Ripley was asleep, no more than I'd expected, honestly. Ripley was the sweet 58-year-old in charge of all the weapon supply for the Double 'O's. Not only was he a superb marksmen himself, but he knew more about guns than any man I'd ever met, I loved him dearly and we were always teasing each other.

I stopped at his door and laid the case the gun was in on the table beneath the depository. I took the notepad and pen and scratched a note quickly.

_Ripley,_

_I really like this one! But you need to tweak the scope a bit, the third button down on my target's shirt was a bit blurry._

_Love, Snaps_

I chuckled a bit as I dropped the note and rifle into the depository and pressed the button that rotated them into the safe on the other side of the wall.

Sighing and yawning slightly, I turned and went back down the hall, then turned right to make my way to my apartment. I passed Kate's along the way, wondering if she was back yet.

Finally, I reached my own door and stuck my key into the lock, hearing it click and happily entering into the silent darkness.

Even though I couldn't see, I knew my home by heart and made my way to the bedside table. I clicked on the soft glowing lamp there, just enough light to see by.

I went to my drawer and took out a pair of silk pajamas, then went to my bathroom to shower and wash away the dirt, grime and sweat that were rewarding in a way. The mark of another mission completed.

Around 45 minutes later (the clock read 3:05AM), I emerged from the bathroom, my hair dry and straight and smelling of strawberries. I threw my clothes into the nook with m y washer and dryer, then crawled into bed.

I had just turned the light off and laid back to sleep when a knock came at the door. I looked at it suspiciously, wondering who in the hell would knock on my door at 3:00AM. I opened my night table drawer and took out the handgun I always kept there. Rolling out of bed, I let my feet hit the carpet and tiptoed soundlessly to the door without turning the light on.

I reached the door and cocked the gun tenderly. Finally, I cracked open the door to see…James.

My heart skipped a beat at the sight of his face in the doorway looking at me with an amused demeanor, his crooked smile I liked so much sending chills down my spine.

I opened the door all the way and put the safety back on my gun.

He sighed, "That's the second time I've almost been shot, tonight."

"Let me guess, Kate?"

"Kate."

I turned and walked back over to the lamp, clicking it on and replacing the gun.

What do you expect at three AM? And from Double 'O's?"

"Good point." He answered.

I looked at him, crawling back into my bed and crossing my legs. He had settled into my armchair and began shuffling my lucky card deck, one decorated with Star Wars characters. The cards were all bent and tearing, but I refused to casually play with anything else. Unless, of course, I was accused of cheating, in which case I was so mad I would play with paper cards made by a 5-year-old if necessary.

"What are you doing?" I asked, tilting my head and grinning. He acted so casually around me, and my heart was always beating a million miles per hour when his ice-blue eyes met mine.

"I thought you'd play some Poker with me." He answered innocently.

"Don't you sleep?"

"Not really." He answered, smirking slyly.

"Well, I do. Can you wait until later?"

He pouted, but I refused to give in. I didn't want him to leave, I wanted him to stay forever, but I had to sleep.

"Fine." He said, standing and going to the door. "You and Kate ruin everything."

I laughed, and he turned to me, looking for a moment before going on out into the hall.

"Lock your door."

"I always do."

I shut the door and listened to his receding footsteps, wondering if he would ever dare about me the way I did about him.

I had to tell Kate, I'd kept this secret long enough.

With the promise of confession lulling me, I immediately fell asleep.


	4. Chapter 3 Shooting Range Talk

Snaps' POV

I woke up around eight and put my hair up, slipping into my most comfortable khaki hip huggers and a sky blue T-shirt. I grabbed my sunglasses and quickly went to Kate's apartment, the keys to my silver Cadillac Cien clinking in my pocket.

Unlike the other Double 'O's, cough James cough, Kate and I had always had the same cars. We took good care of them and loved them dearly, though my reckless driving hinted otherwise.

I knocked on Kate's door hard, knowing it would take the building literally shaking to wake her.

She came to the door, haggard and grouchy, after around five solid minutes of banging.

"Come on, get dressed." I said, inviting myself in and settling in the armchair. "We're going to the shooting range."

Kate's POV

I dressed slowly in my bedroom after Snaps woke me.

"Hurry up!" She called for the eighth time.

"Hey, you're the one who woke me up!" I said as I re-entered the main room in my favorite pair of jeans and light blue tank top, my hair in a ponytail.

"About time!" She said, leading the way to the elevator.

"So…" I asked. "Who's driving?"

"I am."

"You realize it's Wednesday morning at 9:30, right?"

"And your point is?"

"You can't drive like you normally do."

"I know!" Snaps said, a hint of annoyance in her voice.

"Just checking…" I replied as we headed toward her Cadillac Cien.

We arrived at the shooting range a few miles down from headquarters. As usual, it was empty except for the two guys running the place. We got the expected worried looks for being here so early in the morning and being girls.

After about 15 minutes of shooting, Snaps turned to me looking serious.

"What's up?" I asked, setting my gun down.

"Nothing…" She said, picking up her gun again.

Around 5 minutes passed before she again stopped shooting. I was in the middle of aiming at a moving target when she said, "I like your brother."

I looked at her and squeezed the trigger at the same time. The bullet shot into the far wall.

"You what?!" I asked, looking at her wide-eyed ad open-mouthed.

"I-I like James…a lot…"

"Bloody hell!" I exclaimed. "How long?"

"A while…" She replied, blushing a bit.

"Bloody hell…" I mumbled.

"Yeah." Snaps agreed.

"Wow…"

"Yeah…"

A moment passed where I stared at Snaps and she blushed deeper.

"Well," I said, breaking the silence and smiling at her. "Are we gonna shoot or stand here all day?" Which was my way of saying 'I'm happy for you and don't mind at all.'

"Shoot of course." Which was Snaps' way of saying, 'Thanks.'

After an hour at the shooting range, we went to a bar about a block from headquarters. I got a mudslide and Snaps got a Pena Colodda.

We returned to headquarters after we finished our drinks. The rest of the day passed uneventfully. James and Snaps played poker (Snaps won yet again), then Snaps and I played a game of chess, which I won.

I was never good at Poker for some reason. It wasn't that I couldn't play or lie, I just didn't have the luck to play well. I'd always been a chess person anyway, though Snaps gave me a run for my money.


	5. Chapter 4 M's Report

Snaps' POV

The day after we went to the shooting range, we spent the day with James. I played that Poker game James had asked for while Kate sat to the side and cheered me on. She'd gotten tired of losing and decided only to gamble with her life long ago.

After James lost around $100, we finally stopped and he told me he owed me.

"Yeah, that and about $1,000 more…" I said as Kate and I left.

The following morning, I awoke around eight and put on a pair of white cargo pants along with a red Capri sleeve button-up.

Slipping on my white trainers, I prepared to head to the library downtown. Reading was my favorite pastime between missions, as life seemed quite boring without an assignment.

I stopped at Kate's door, planning to ask her to come with me. Knocking, I was surprised to discover that she was awake.

"I'm going to go find a decent read, you want to come?"

She yawned slightly, but appeared mostly awake. "Sure, just let me get dressed."

I came in and sat down. Soon, she emerged form the bathroom in jeans and a lavender tank top.

"Ready?" I asked. She nodded.

We walked out into the hall and Kate turned to lock her door.

Suddenly, the red lights that lined the hall began to flash, a small beeping sound emitting from the speaker next to it. This was the signal that M needed all the Double O's to report to her conference hall immediately.

"Finally, something interesting." I muttered as we began jogging down the hall toward the room we met in. I heard Dyna's door open and close behind us. She passed us, ramming into my shoulder as she went and calling back,

"Don't be late, Blonde!"

Kate's eyes narrowed and she began to run faster. I reached my arm out and stopped her. "Just let her go, Kate."

She shoved my arm away, but slowed her pace back down nevertheless.

"Bloody git." She muttered, and I snickered.

"You know she hates me too, right?"

"Yes, because she thinks she's in love with my brother. Hell will freeze over before I let her touch him, though." She said venomously.

"…me too." I said quietly.

We walked into the small room at last, taking two of the remaining three seats and crossing our legs. Looking at the empty seat next to Kate, I asked,

"Where's James? M will have his ass!"

"I know. But you know how he likes his entrances."

I rolled my eyes and sat back, waiting for M to arrive (and James).

At last, M walked in, her always serious face even more serious than usual (a feat I never thought she'd achieve). She sat down in her chair at the head of the table, slamming her portfolio down with an aggressive smack.

Any Double O could look at M and tell she used to be one as well. Her mannerisms and sense of authority were dead giveaways…along with her high intolerance level for stupid questions and actions. She was an extremely intelligent woman, though I will never call her a mother or grandmother figure for fear of facing the barrel of a gun.

I snapped out of it at the sound of M's demanding voice.

"Bond."

"Yes?" Kate asked.

"Where's Bond?"

I covered my mouth in a snicker at the irony.

"I'm not sure, would you like me to-"

"No. If he missed this report, it's his own loss."

She took another breath to begin, when suddenly, the door opened and James sauntered in, cool and casual. It always got him into trouble, but his constant calm state was something I found extremely attractive. I loved that he always seemed relaxed in even the tensest situation. He walked past me to the seat on Kate's other side, his scent wafting beneath my nose, tantalizing me.

He took his seat, and I glanced down at him, our eyes meeting for only a flicker of a moment before I turned back to M, feeling a blush rise to my cheeks.

"Welcome, 007." Me said coldly. "Nice to see you felt it necessary to attend this meeting."

"Glad to be here." James said, flashing his smile at M. It was the key to flaring her anger as well as the key to stopping it. Luckily, this time, it was the latter.

M picked her portfolio up and removed five pieces of paper, passing one to each of us in turn. "These are gas and oil price statistics of various European countries surrounding Lebanon. The stock market reports are also included. As you can see, they are rising at a steady rate of around 15 per month."

"Is that more than normal?" Dyna asked, looking her sheet over.

"It's not the rate at which they're rising that I'm worried about." M said.

"It's that they're constantly rising." I finished. "Gas and oil prices usually fluctuate."

"Right." M said. "Now, take a look at this. These are the names of the central intelligence secretaries of defense, presidents, or any major leaders of these countries." She passed us each another paper, James scanned his quickly, and was the first to notice.

"Most of them have changed in the past three months…"

"Around the same time the price fluctuation began." Kate concluded.

"MI6 has decided to look into the case, as Lebanon has been a previous threat, and whoever is getting rid of those in charge could come here next. That money is going somewhere, and let's just say it's not the needy children's fund."

"They're funding something." Jack said somberly.

M looked around the table, and we all straightened up, her eyes inspecting us for loyalty and bravery.

'Please not James…' I thought. 'Don't assign him…' It's not that I didn't think he could handle himself. I knew he could. I just…didn't want to watch him go again.

Finally, M spoke.

"I will assign a Double O within the week. "With that, she picked up her folder and left.

I let out a breath I didn't know I'd been holding as I watched her go. We each stood and exited, Kate in front of me and James behind.

"Who do you think she'll send?" Kate asked.

"Who else?" James piped up.

"If you mean yourself-" Kate began.

James chuckled, as though it were obvious he would be sent for the simple fact he was male. By this point, we'd reached the apartments again.

"Think you're the most qualified, do you?" I asked.

He looked at me, but didn't answer, his ice blue eyes begging me not to bring up what he knew I was about to bring up.

"What numbers come before seven?" I teased, smiling and crossing my arms.

He turned and went to his door with his head hung, and I heard what I'd wanted to hear just as the door slammed.

"Five and bloody six."


	6. Chapter 5 A Battle of Wits

Kate's POV

The second day after we all returned, it was raining and we still had not been given any orders. So, I finally convinced Snaps to play chess, seeing as I wouldn't play poker.

As it neared the first hour since our battle of wits had started, Snaps said, "You know, we should have partners for missions."

"Partners?" I asked as I moved my rook forward.

"Partners." She repeated, killing my rook with her knight. "You know, for longer missions, so it's safer."

"Hmmm…good idea." I said at last as I took her knight with my bishop. "After all, the last long mission any of us went on was James, and he nearly got himself killed."

"Too true." She replied, moving her queen to take my king. "Check." She said with a smirk.

"Not so fast." I said, taking her queen with my remaining rook. "So, who's gonna pitch this to M?"

"Not me."

"Well, I'm not going to."

"Neither am I."

The game went on for a few moments in silence.

"Why don't we both go?" I asked.

"Sounds good to me." Snaps replied.

"Checkmate!" I declared.

"Damnit." Snaps cursed under her breath.

I was glad that we were going to see M together because she was not the easiest person to tell an idea to. Alsoha, if more than one of the Double O's approached her, she was more likely to give in.

"Tomorrow?" I asked.

"Tomorrow."


	7. Chapter 6 Letting Go

Kate's POV

The morning that Snaps and I were going to talk to M, I awoke to knocking at my door.

"Snaps!" I yelled as I pulled myself out of bed and walked to the door. "Every day since I've been back, you've-" I stopped short when I opened the door and saw it was not Snaps there, but James. "Morning, James."

"Katie, I need to talk to you…" He said.

James only called me "Katie" when he wanted to talk to me like his little sister. I looked up at his eyes, they were a deep blue. Anyone who knew James or me well enough could tell how we felt by our eye color. When we were mad, they would go from ice blue to nearly clear, but when we were sad, they would turn a deep blue of sorrow.

"Just let me get dressed, then we'll go for a walk." I told him as I opened the door all the way.

I quickly ran to my dresser and grabbed a pale green T-shirt and a pair of denim capris, then changed in the bathroom and pulled my hair into a ponytail.

After I pulled on my tennis shoes, I said, "Ok, let's go."

James nodded and led the way out after I locked the door.

Once outside, we started walking down the sidewalk. "So," I asked, "what's on your mind?"

"Vesper." He said simply.

(Note to Reader: If you haven't seen Casino Royale, I'm sorry to tell you this, but James fell in love with this chick named Vesper and named a drink after her, then she betrayed him, only she really hadn't, then she died)

"Oh James. Are you all right?" I asked. He hadn't talked about Vesper since he returned after her death, nearly two years ago.

"Yeah." He replied quietly. "Katie, I think-I think I may be nearly over her…"

"James, that's great!" I said brightly, but I frowned when I saw he was still down. "I hate to ask, but why?"

"I think it's time I moved on with my life, stop looking back at the past that I can't change and look to the future. And…" He trailed off, but I could see a smile pulling at the corners of his mouth and his eyes had lightened a lot.

"And?" I encouraged.

"And I think I may like someone…"

"Anyone I know?"

"Yes…"

"I'm your sister, James, I'm not going to tell anyone!"

He thought for a moment, then said, "Give me your word."

I rolled my eyes, but knew it was the only way he would tell me. James knew I'd die sooner than break my word.

"Fine. I give you my word as your sister and a Double 'O' I won't tell a living soul the name you speak…good enough?"

"Perfect." He replied, smirking. "Snaps."

"What?!" Had I not had the same conversation with her naught but a few days ago?!

"I think I like Snaps."

"You think?"

"Fine. I KNOW I like her…a lot."

"Bloody hell." I mumbled.

"I know." James said. "I've been thinking about her a lot more lately. I worried about her when she went on her last mission. I realized all of this the night you two got back and I went to go play poker with her…"

"Bloody hell."

"Say something else." He nearly ordered.

"Bloody hell." I said, just to annoy him this time.

"Kate!"

I smiled, "James, I think it's wonderful. Snaps is a great person and one of the few people I trust."

"Thanks, Katie." He said, pulling me into a brotherly hug. "I really needed to talk."

"Any time." I replied as we ended our hug. "That's what sisters are for. Now, let's go back to headquarters."

"OK…wait, what if I act differently around her?"

"Don't. Just be yourself."

We returned to Headquarters and parted ways.


	8. Chapter 7 On Knees Before the Queen

Snaps' POV

Kate and I stood before M's door, fighting with our eyes about who would knock. She won out, of course, and I hated her for it.

"Shut up." I hissed as I raised my hand to knock. I dind' thave to look to know she was snickering.

A voice came from the other side of the door. "This had better be good."

In M's language, that meant 'Enter if you dare.'

Kate and I both took a simultaneous breath, then entered quietly.

M sat at the other end of her large office, scratching away with a pen on some file at her desk. We walked up slowly, then stood, waiting for her to acknowledge our presense.

Finally, she spoke, though she did not lift her head.

"Yes?"

I cleared my throat and placed my hands behind my back, they were clammy. I had never been much of a people-person.

"We would like to make a…proposal." I stammered.

"Proposal?" M asked, still not looking up.

"Yes, ma'am." I answered. "For the safety of all MI6 agents."

At last, she looked up, her eyes scrutinizing us over the rims of her glasses.

"…well?" She asked, impatiently. Apparently, we were wasting too much of her time.

"We want to make a proposal that all status-quo agents and Double 'O's be required to work in pairs." Kate said smoothly and calmly. She'd always had an heir of confidence that I couldn't find when it came to speaking. She'd told me once that as a child, she'd been shy, but as she'd grown, it had left her. For me, it had been the entire opposite.

M took her glasses off and folded her hands in front of her. A good sign, we'd gotten her attention.

"May I ask why?" She interrogated.

I wanted to answer that, but I was afraid something I'd rather keep a secret would escape my mouth.

"Because many Double 'O's have come close to death on recent missions, only escaping by sheer luck…ourselves included."

"Yes, you all have been cutting it close, lately." M said irritably.

We looked at her expectantly.

"I'll consider it."

"Thank you." We said, then turned and left, knowing we'd gotten what we wanted.


	9. Chapter 8 I Need a Drink

Kate's POV

The day after mine and Snaps' talk with M, the meeting alarm went off around 8:00PM. I rolled my eyes, that thing always seemed to go off right when I was resting, reading, or doing something.

Making my way into the hall, I saw Dyna run by and Jack nearly ran over top of me trying to catch up with her.

"Watch it, Clancy!" I called after him, he didn't seem to hear me over his lust though.

Snaps came out of her door and said, "Here we go again."

"Better hurry or we'll be as late as James." I said.

"And that's a bad ting?" James asked, coming from his room at a slow pace.

"In our case, yes." I said as Snaps and I started to head for the conference room.

When we reached the conference room, we took our seats and waited for James. M was standing at the head of the table and Jack was trying to catch his breath. James entered the room and took his seat as he normally did, as if we were early and he had arrived right on time.

M cleared her throat and began, "It was recently suggested that all Double 'O's work with partners to reduce the risk. I've given it much thought, and concluded it to be a good idea." I smiled at Snaps, we had gotten through to her. "So, Jack, you'll be working with Dyna now, and James, you'll be with Kate and Snaps."

All of us but Jack jumped to our feet.

"I can't work with him!" Dyna's high voice rang out.

"I work alone!" James said firmly.

"I can't work with my brother!" I yelled.

Snaps did not voice her complaint, good thing too. Jack just looked like a kid at Christmas.

M raised her hand for silence, all of us were instantly quiet. "This is final."

Dyna stormed out of the room and Jack followed her like a lost dog. Once they were out of the room, James and I started back on how we couldn't work with family.

M silenced us again and said, "You should have thought of that before you and Snaps suggested this, 005!" With that, M turned and headed for the door, but stopped just before walking out. "Oh, and you three have the Lebanon mission."

We all stood in the echoing silence, James glaring at me, me staring after M in disbelief, and Snaps first to find her voice.

"I need a drink!"

That being said, she walked out of the room and I heard the door to her room slam.

"Brilliant, Kate, just brilliant!" James said after watching Snaps walk away. He, too returned to his room.

"Bloody hell." I said to the world at large. 'Snaps has the right idea.' I thought, and headed for the bar near headquarters.

"What'll it be?" The bartender asked me as I sat down.

"A Nightmare." I said shortly.

About halfway to the bottom of my drink, Snaps dropped into another seat at the bar, making sure to leave a stool between us.

"Listen carefully." She told the bartender. "One measure of tequila, two of Bourbon, half a measure of vodka, and a shot of Everclear. And make it quick!"

'Damn, she added the Everclear…' I thought, knowing Snaps only added Everclear to her drink when she was in a bad mood.

My drinks changed so much I never knew what I felt like. I drunk Nightmares and Jedi Mind Tricks when I was in a bad mood, just a shot of Vodka when I was mad, and the rest of the time, whatever I was in the mood for.

"Another?" The bartender asked me, and after I nodded, he looked past me and said, "And you, sir?"

I turned and saw James, he ordered his drink, and when the bartender asked "Shaken or stirred?" he replied, "Do I look like I give a damn?" Then took the seat between Snaps and I.

"Shaken." I told the bewildered man.

After a few drinks, we were all feeling better. James wrapped an arm around mine and Snaps' shoulders and asked "So, girls. When are we leaving?"

"Leaving?" Snaps asked, blushing.

"Oh, yeah." I said. "We got the Lebanon mission."

"So?" James asked again.

"Tomorrow?" I asked.

"Tomorrow sounds good." Snaps said.

"Well, ten we better head back to headquarters and get some sleep." I said, standing.

I was surprised when James kept his arm around Snaps' shoulders the whole way back to headquarters. Once he had went into his room and a very red Snaps and I stood alone in the hall, I said, "Well, fate seems to be on your side."

"He was drunk. He didn't know what he was doing." Snaps said firmly.

"Snaps, dear, my brother doesn't get drunk. He still had a clear mind." I replied smirking. "He knew exactly what he was doing…"

She stood there for a moment just staring at his door, then said, "I'm going to bed." With that, she entered her room and I heard the lock click.

'Well,' I thought as I entered my own room and locked the door behind me, 'This is going to be a very interesting mission…'


	10. Chapter 9 An Unusual Welcome

Kate's POV

The following morning, James, Snaps, and I packed for our mission. Our flight was leaving at 8:00PM tonight, and would arrive the next morning at 7:00AM Lebanon time.

Lebanon is a small country, bordered by Syria to the North, Israel to the South and East, and the Mediterranean Sea on the West. On the coast, winter is normally cool and rainy. In the mountains (which cover nearly all of the country, except the coast), temperatures usually drop below 0 degrees C with frequent snowfall. Lebanon has two spoken languages, Arabic and French.

Despite having three Double 'O's on this mission, we still needed a guide that knew the country and language, seeing as none of us knew French or Arabic, although Snaps had taken some classes in French years before.

After Snaps and I finished packing, we went down to see Ripley and Web.

Ripley and Web used to be Double 'O's, but one they got too old for that, they took up managing the weapons and technology the new Double 'O's used. Ripley took control of the weapons. Snaps loved to pick on poor old Ripley, mainly on his new scopes, seeing as she was nearly the only one who used them. Web, on the other hand, built all the gadgets we used. Having a mind that thought a little on the technological side of thing, I picked on Web.

Snaps and I were close with both of them and felt they were somewhat like our favorite uncles who visited all the time or something to that effect.

Visiting them took most of the rest of the day, seeing as Snaps and Ripley fought about if the scope of the rifle she'd used last was really messed up or not…it was.

Finally, the time came for us to go to the airport to get on our plane. MI6 had its own jet, and apparently, our mission was important enough for its use.

The flight was long and rather dull, Snaps and James played poker, I watched them for a time, then started to read the book I had brought along. Around 10:00PM, we all snuggled down with pillows and blankets, and slept the remainder of the flight.

I awoke as the plane started its decent into Lebanon. James was trying to get Snaps to play 'one last hand' of Poker.

"James, I've already taken all your money." Snaps said as if she had said it for the millionth time.

"All the more reason to let me win it back!" James replied, smirking.

"Give it a rest, James." I said. "We'll be landing any moment."

"Fine." He said, a little downhearted.

We landed ten minutes later, and all stretched before getting off the plane, it had been a long flight.

A man, about the same height as James give or take an inch, was standing by a black car when we exited the plane. He had short brown hair and brown eyes. He met us halfway to the car.

"I'm Lex Carter." He held out his hand for James to shake. "You must be 005." My mouth dropped open, while James and Snaps tried, with no avail, to hide their laughing. "Did I say something funny?" Lex asked in a British accent that I noticed for the first time.

"I'M 005!" I said firmly.

I could feel the anger pulsing through my veins.

"I'm sorry, I-I didn't know." Lex said, taking a step back in shock. "I-I guess I didn't think-"

"That the top Double 'O' would be a girl?!" I cut in venomously as I took a step forward.

"N-no. I guess I thought he was because he was in front." Lex said, taking another step back.

"Sure…" I said disbelievingly.

James stepped in front of me, blocking Lex from my view. "That was Kate, she's my little sister too, if you can believe that. I'm James Bond, 007."

"I'm Snapdragon Madison, 006. But just call me Snaps." Snaps said.

I pushed James out of my way and into Snaps, throwing both of them off a bit. James placed a hand on the small of her back to steady her and himself, they both blushed lightly.

I glared at Lex, barely noticing how handsome he was, he took a step closer to me, looking right into my ice blue eyes, his own brown ones staring back.

"You'll have to forgive me, Miss Bond, I've never worked with Double 'O's before. And I've only been working for Lebanon's government for two years, but I'm also the top agent."

"Perhaps your government should inform you better?" I said coolly, though I was no longer glaring.

"Perhaps." He then took my hand and softly kissed it. "Welcome to Lebanon, Miss Bond."


	11. Chapter 10 Home Away from Home

Snaps' POV

Our escort took us to a hotel on the coast, the rain and mist neutralizing the effect the ocean usually has on me. I'd always liked the ocean. Not only is it beautiful and refreshing, but it reminded me of how small I was, and how many things there were which could overpower me…that I wasn't always in control. Yet, at the same time, my biggest fear had always been drowning. It's strange how the things you love the most are the things you're most afraid will kill you.

"Snaps?" James' voice cut into my thoughts like a knife into warm butter.

I turned to him, ripping my eyes from the dim view outside. "Yes?"

"You look like you're out to tea. What could possibly be stealing your attention away from me?" He smiled coyly.

I smirked and raised an eyebrow. "Jealous?" James made it so easy to flirt with him, his comments always so forward and honest.

He raised his eyebrows, and I knew I'd caught him off guard.

"Perhaps."

We stared at each other for a moment, as though trying to evaluate whether we were serious or teasing. As always, I came away undecided. Looking down for a moment, I cleared my throat, as though regrouping from some great battle. Strange, how I always felt worn out, as though James was…testing me.

"I was…just thinking. About the ocean."

"Ah. The ocean."

I looked at him. "You don't like it?"

"It's just one more mud puddle."

I laughed slightly. "A very large mud puddle if you ask me."

"Large, yes. But a mud puddle nonetheless."

"Well," I said, turning from the window just in time to see Kate retrieving our room keys. "You'd better get used to it."

I walked past him, grabbing my suitcase as I went. As I reached the desk, Kate turned to me. "We have two rooms. One for James and one for you and me."

"You mean I'm all alone?" James asked, approaching with he and Kate's bags. "How devastating."

"Don't worry." I said. "Perhaps you got the ocean view."

I turned to Kate smiling.

"Snaps, one. Bond…zero."

Our room was a color-scheme of yellow and light purple, with two queen-sized beds and a large bay window.

James had the room next door, facing west, which meant he had gotten an ocean view after all.

Once we'd unpacked, we walked over to James' room. We had agreed to go to the Casino in the lobby to discuss our plan of action. Another ironic coincidence, the most crowded place around, and the place where we would never be heard.


	12. Chapter 11 Plan and an Apology

Kate's POV

We all sat at one of the few tables that were open in the far corner of the casino. The casino was small, but noisy and crowded. It gave us a good cover to talk.

James coldly took the seat to Snaps' right, while I sat on her left. Lex took the remaining seat on my left. I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye to see him looking at me.

"From the information that my government has obtained," Lex began, "The main points that the traitors are possibly operating out of are three bases. One on the far north coast. This one would be small, no more than 10 or 15 men there at a time. Another small base is possibly in the northern mountains. And the last and largest is thought to be somewhere in the southern mountains."

"And just how did your government get this information?" I asked.

"The same way anyone gets information, Miss Bond-"

"Kate." I corrected lightly.

He nodded, and then continued. "Find someone who knows more than you do."

"And who did you find?" James asked.

"A few of our agents caught one of their men at a checkpoint between the north coast and the north-east Mountains. He was wanted as a suspect for arson back in May, but it seems he was beyond that."

"Seems like we need to find someone who knows more than us." Snaps said.

"How's the security at your embassy?" James asked with a slight smirk.

"All right, I guess. Why?" Lex asked.

"They know more than us." I said, realizing what James was getting at.

"And do you know anyone else that might be behind any of this?" Snaps asked.

"Well," Lex said, a bit uneasily. "There are a few crooked politicians just west of here."

"Brilliant!" I said, and then turned to James and Snaps. "Tomorrow we'll go and check out the embassy's and those politicians' security systems. If you two can distract the guards, then I can get into the computer database and-"

"There's no way that you can get into our database!" Lex cut in, nearly laughing.

"Oh, really?" I said dangerously.

"Yes." He replied. "Kate, our security may be second rate, but our computer system is highly protected."

"Listen, every Double O has his or her way of getting information. Snaps flirts, James…we don't talk about, and I hack into computers."

"Don't say I didn't warn you." Lex mumbled.

"Okay." Snaps broke in. "Scoping out the security systems sounds like the best place to start."

James nodded.

"All right." Lex said at last. "I'll take you lot to the embassy tomorrow and point out our security."

"Good." I said, and then asked. "Snaps, what time is it?"

After checking her watch, she replied, "9:35."

"I'm going to turn in for the night." I said, standing up. I noticed James looking at the casino. "Don't lose too much." I warned him.

"I'll try." He said, with a smirk as he and Snaps headed off to the nearest Hold 'em table.

I headed for the elevator, but stopped when I felt a light tap on my shoulder. I turned to see Lex standing right behind me.

"Do you mind if I walk you back to your room?" He asked.

"I believe I can make it on my own, thank you." I replied, not in a tone of anger, it was more like indifference.

"But it will give me a chance to apologize."

I turned and continued on my way, somehow knowing he would follow. "Apologize? For what?"

"I seem to have offended you again." He replied as we reached the elevator. "As I said before, I've never worked with Double O's and I'm not used to being around people who have the skills you three have."

We were now at the door to mine and Snaps' room.

"I'm sorry, too. I'm not used to being around people that much. I'm either around Snaps and James or other Double O's, who I really don't get along with. Other than that, I normally just go kill whoever I'm told to."

"That sounds interesting." Lex replied carefully.

"You'd be amazed at how many people piss off Britain."

"I'm sure I would." He smiled, looking into my eyes. "Goodnight, Kate."

To my own astonishment, I smiled back at him and replied, "Night."

I then unlocked the door and walked in, hearing his footsteps go back toward the elevator. It was then that I realized that I was blushing.

Cursing myself for letting my emotions get the better of me, I dug my shower things and PJs out of my bag and headed to the bathroom to take a shower.

After my shower, I climbed into bed and continued reading the book I had started on the plane, waiting for Snaps to come back to the room and see how her night went.

Around 11:00PM, I gave up on her and James coming back at all.


	13. Chapter 12 Crooked Scope

Snaps' POV

The next morning, a loud knock at my door awoke me. Through squinted eyes, I read the time on my alarm clock, 9:45.

'Damn you, James.' I thought bitterly. Any other day, I would have been up at least an hour and a half earlier. He had kept insisting on one more buy-in the night before, and we'd played poker until around 3:15 in the morning.

"I'm coming!" I called, knowing it was Kate, who had most likely already taken her shower, gotten breakfast, and occupied herself as long as her patience would allow.

I heard a soft snicker and her receding footsteps, heading for James' room. She was proud of herself for being up before me; I'd most likely never hear the end of it.

After listening to the loud thump and yell that had to be Kate hitting James with a pillow (he never locked his door, despite his demands that we did), I rolled over and put my feet onto the soft carpet. I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths, smelling the sea air carried to my nose through the yellow curtains blowing in the breeze from the unusually sunny morning.

I stood and went for a shower.

Around thirty minutes later, I emerged from the bathroom, smelling of Japanese Cherry Blossoms, my hair dry and straight. The chenille bathrobe on my shoulders tickled them lightly.

I went to eh closet and took out a pair of white capris and a yellow button up T-shirt. I put my white lacy tank top on underneath it and left the buttons undone.

Last, I pulled my hair back and grabbed my handgun, tucking it into a handbag so I could get it out of the hotel unnoticed.

At last, I came out into the hall and turned for the elevator. James left his room at the same time, looking considerably worse than I did. He'd had a few more drinks, whereas I knew when to say 'no.'

"How do you feel this morning, James?" I asked, practically bouncing on my feet, so happy to be sober.

"Bloody brilliant, and you?" He answered, pushing the down button.

"Marvelous." I said dramatically. "How much did you lose?"

"…not much." We stepped into the elevator.

He knew as well as I that I hadn't lost anything.

A few minutes later, we walked into the hotel lobby side by side, where Kate and Lex sat waiting for us. I raised my eyebrows, noticing the sparks between them for the first time. I wasn't sure if even Kate did yet, but something told me they were going to be perfect for each other.

For a moment, I was afraid that James would notice and get angry, but he seemed too preoccupied by his headache. He didn't show any outer signs, but anyone who knew him well knew he had a headache when his pupils got smaller.

"How about you lay off the drinks the rest of the time we're here?" I asked him, truly concerned.

"First night festivities couldn't help it." He looked down at me, smiling gently. "I will."

It felt good that he was taking my advice, I smiled back.

At last, we reached where Lex and Kate sat.

"Good morning." She said brightly.

"Morning." I replied.

James didn't say anything, then again, no one expected him to.

Lex stood. "Shall we leave?"

I nodded, and he led the way to the door. He opened it gracefully, gesturing to Kate. "Ladies first."

I smiled. He was really laying it on thick.

Kate nodded and exited gracefully herself. I looked up at James, and for the first time, I noticed a spark of realization in his eyes. I went through the door next, and though my back was turned, I felt sure James and Lex were sharing a hateful stare behind me.

About forty five minutes later, we arrived at the embassy, a light drizzle was falling, but the warm air from the ocean still made it a good temperature outside. We got out, and Lex opened an umbrella for Kate and me.

We took it, knowing it was only for the purpose of cover. We walked through the gates unnoticed, under the facades of visitors taking a tour.

We walked around the entire perimeter, Lex discreetly showing us all the cameras and security beams. On the outside, the security did not seem so superior to Britain's, but I was looking forward to seeing if what was on the inside was as sophisticated as Lex claimed.

Lex managed to get us in without our guns being detected, claiming it was our car keys. Once inside, the security emerged.

All the major rooms were protected by eye scanning mechanisms as well as fingerprint and voice identity, not to mention the security cards required for every office.

On the way out, Lex raised his eyebrows at us. "Well, what do you think?"

I smiled at him. "Very nice, indeed." Then looked at Kate, knowing she'd realized the same thing as I while inside. "They've failed to protect the one thing we need first." I said, smirking.

Lex looked at us, confused. "And what's that?"

Kate smiled mischievously. "The security tapes."


	14. Chapter 13 The Politician's Home

Kate's POV

After leaving the embassy, we drove for another hour before arriving at a large white mansion that was one of the politicians' homes.

"There's a session of congress today," Lex said. "So only a few members of the housekeeping staff should be here."

"Good." Snaps said as we all got out of the car, thankfully, it was still just barely raining.

The huge iron fence that surrounded the house would be easy to get around.

"There are more cameras here in front." Lex told us.

"What about in back?" James asked as we started to follow the fence to the back of the home.

"Not many, three at most." Lex replied.

"Four." Snaps, James, and I corrected at the same time as we looked through the fence.

"Where?"

"One on each corner of the building." Snaps said as if a two-year-old could've found them.

"One is hidden in that light." James said, pointing to a lamp post by the fence.

"I see those, but where's the last?" Lex asked.

James and Snaps smirked.

"The gazing ball near the center of the yard." I said matter-of-factly.

"Oh…"

We looked carefully around the rest of the premises and found that most of the cameras were short range, and that none of the windows on the first floor near the back had alarms. It would be easy to get inside and get out without being seen.

I was proud of myself for keeping my emotions in check all day. It was odd, as weird as it sounded, I'd never liked a guy before. All through school, I was alone or hanging out with James and his friends, who were all older than me. During my work at MI6, I mainly hung out with Snaps (and by now, you all know how much I dislike Jack!).

We were now back at the hotel.

"So…" I asked. "Hit the embassy tomorrow?"

"Sound good." Snaps said, and James just nodded.

"No." Lex said firmly. "There's a huge departmental meeting tomorrow. We should wait until Saturday, no one will be there except the guards. The Ambassador is going on a weekend trip to America."

I sighed. "Fine. Saturday it is."


	15. Chapter 14 A Day at the Bookstore

Kate's POV

The next day (Tuesday) came and went with nothing to do. The only entertainment I had had been reading, seeing as I hadn't brought my chess set with me, I no longer gambled (except with my life), so the casino was out, it was raining (which I didn't mind, I love the rain), and there was nothing on TV. So by the time Wednesday rolled around, I _had_ to get out of that hotel.

I woke up around 9:00, which was sleeping in by Double O standards, took a shower, and got dressed in my favorite pair of jeans (because, surprise, surprise, it was raining) and a black tank top.

I grabbed an apple from a bowl of fruit in the room and then sat down in the middle of my bed with my laptop. I started searching for bookstores, since I had finished the only book I had brought yesterday.

Finding a good bookstore in walking distance of a hotel would've been easy if only three little things were not holding me back, one, I was in Lebanon, two, the wireless internet system was slower than I would've thought possible, and three, search engines hated me. I can hack into any government system in fifteen minutes or less, but I try to use Google or Yahoo and I'll sit around all day trying to find what I'm looking for (go ahead and laugh, Snaps and James do all the time).

After two apples and hours of looking, I finally found that Barnes and Nobles had only one store in Lebanon, one block away from the hotel. Thank God! I ran over to my bag and dug out my small tan messenger bag (which I use as a computer bag) and my lightweight brown jacket. After stuffing my laptop, gun, room key, cell phone, and money into the messenger bag, I headed out of the hotel and into the rainy afternoon (I left Snaps a note telling her I'd be back).

Despite being in a city, the rain seemed to clean the air. I supposed that's what I'd always loved about rain, it cleaned the world in a sense, making it a better place if only by a little.

I smiled as I entered the store, my favorite scent surrounding me, a mixture of coffee and new, crisp pages. The store wasn't crowded, seeing as it was a Wednesday at 12:45.

I finally found where the fantasy books were and was happy to find that they were in English. Despite my age of 22, I still loved fantasy books. Daring adventure that always ended happily. A world apart from our own. My book tastes were hard to please though, I liked books with just a hint of romance rather than a whole book filled with it.

After 20 minutes of searching, I found one that looked promising – Twilight. It was about vampires, or, rather, a girl falling for a vampire, who may or may not end up killing her in the end. Sounded great! Carrying the vampire book with me, I headed out in search of what I call the 'Ancient Section,' because I didn't think 'literature' justified it. That's where I found Shakespeare, and other dead guys from long ago whose works I liked to read.

I already knew what I wanted from this section – Hamlet and The Iliad. I had been meaning to reread Hamlet for a while, and had never read The Iliad, though I did enjoy The Odyssey, so the choice was easy.

All three books in hand, I went to find somewhere to read in the store, because I didn't want to go back to the hotel just yet. I found an empty chair near the café at the front of the store and began to read Twilight.

Twenty minutes into the book, a shadow was cast over it. I thought nothing of it and continued to read.

"What are you reading?" A voice asked that seemed familiar.

I looked up and to my amazement, saw Lex, smiling down at me.

"A vampire book." I answered.

"Mind if I sit down?" He asked, pointing to the chair across from me.

"Not at all." I replied, setting down my book.

He sat down and looked at my other books. "Vampires, huh?" I nodded. "I thought you were a bookworm, but I guess I thought you'd be reading something more…" he seemed to have trouble finding the right word. "Real." He said at last.

"Real is a point of view." I said, smirking. "The places I read about are real, or at least, the last time I checked, Washington was still a state in America, Troy used to be where Turkey is now, and Denmark is still in Europe."

"All right." He said, defeated, yet still smiling. "But why Hamlet? You look more like a Romeo and Juliet type."

I couldn't help but laugh, "What made you think that, my hair color?" I asked sarcastically.

"No." He answered truthfully.

"Hamlet because it's interesting." I explained. "It has everything a good book, or play in this case, needs. Swordfights, a ghost, revenge, hope, love, loss, everything."

"Sounds like you've read it before."

"When I was nine."

"Nine?"

I nodded.

"Poetry is a far cry from Hamlet." Lex said, picking up The Iliad.

"It's not poetry." I said, and he raised an eyebrow at me. "It's epic poetry."

"Poetry is poetry." He replied, setting the book back down.

"This poetry has war, Greek mythology, and more I'm sure." I retorted.

"You've got quite a unique taste in books."

I shrugged. "What are you doing here?" I asked in search of a new subject.

He held up a thin black book on Criminal Justice.

I checked the clock on my cell phone – 3:30. "I better head back before James and Snaps start wondering where I'm at."

I stood and gathered my books, then headed for the register to pay for them.

"Wait." Lex said, standing also. "Can I walk you back to the hotel?"

I stared at him a moment. 'Don't get emotionally involved. Don't get emotionally involved.' I told myself, yet said, "Sure."

We paid for our books then headed back outside into the lightly falling rain.

"Why did you get into this line of work?" Lex asked after a few moments of silence.

"Why do you ask so many questions?" I retorted. Why I became a Double O was not my favorite subject.

"I want to know more about you." Lex answered, not bothering to ask why I had avoided his last question. "I think you're interesting."

"Interesting?" I scoffed. "How so?"

"Well…" Lex started. "Take your brother for example. He's reckless, impulsive, has no concern for rules, enjoys gambling, and probably likes to drive fast."

"Do you like to psychoanalyze people?" I asked, then added. "That still doesn't answer my question."

"I'm getting to that, and I've got a Master's in Criminal Psychology, so analyzing people is kind of a habit." He replied, giving me a smile that bordered on a smirk. "Now, Snaps was harder to figure out. She's more mathematical than James, still likes to gamble, she's not as reckless, and likes to drive fast, but not as fast as him. She's probably a bookworm too."

"You figured that out after four days?" I asked, impressed.

Lex nodded. "You're harder to get. Apart from our first meeting, you look and act more like a doctor than a Double O. You're a bookworm, you probably like to work alone, you used to gamble, and you don't trust people. That's why you didn't tell me why you became a Double O."

I nodded. "Not trusting people comes with the job." We entered the hotel. "Thanks."

"I'll figure you our eventually." Lex replied, smirking.

"Good luck."

He nodded goodbye, then left, leaving me standing there trying to get my heart back down to its normal pace, and telling myself not to get emotionally involved.

Lex's POV

I walked out into the rain smiling, though my face fell. 'I shouldn't be doing this. I shouldn't talk to her or want to be near her. I can't get close to Kate, or any of them.'

' I just need to stay indifferent. That should be easy enough…

Yeah, right!


	16. Chapter 15 Tomorrow is Another Day

Snaps' POV

The week dragged by, it seemed, with nothing to do but sit in the hotel room and watch TV. Life without gunshots and car chases was just too…normal for my taste.

At last, Friday rolled around, and the only thing I could find worth doing was watching 'Gone With the Wind' on cable in my room.

I had had a few words with the kitchen, and managed to secure a quart of Half Baked Ben and Jerry's ice cream. I lay in my bed, still in my pajamas and the pillows in a sort of fort around me as the second half of the movie began.

I had just dug my spoon into the ice cream when a knock came at my door.

"It's unlocked!" I called, not taking my eyes off of the screen as Scarlet shot a vandal right in the face. That had always been my favorite part, the only time the heroine showed any gumption.

James came around the corner and looked from me to the screen and back to me again, then sauntered over to the bed, his hands in the pockets of his khaki pants.

"You never struck me as a 'Gone With the Wind' type." He said coolly.

"I like Rhett Butler." I said, still not looking anywhere but at the TV.

He sat down on the edge of the bed, but I was too immersed in the movie to notice his apparent nervousness.

"I was thinking that…maybe we could spend the day together."

I looked at him then, surprised, sure, being outright and honest was James Bond's style, but being uncertain most definitely wasn't.

He recovered himself quickly. "If you're bored enough to watch this. Surely, you think I can provide better entertainment." He smiled, his blue eyes glinting.

I tilted my head incredulously. "Sorry, Mr. Bond. Once I start something, I have to finish it."

"Are you talking about the ice cream or the movie?" He chuckled.

I looked down at the tub. "Maybe both."

"Well, all right, then." He pointed a finger at me. "But you're scarred me forever."

He got up and started to leave, and I all of a sudden felt desperate to try to make him stay.

"James!" I called, just a hint too desperately perhaps.

He turned back.

I held out the tub of ice cream to him. "If you really want to spend time with me, we don't have to go out…I'll share the ice cream." I smiled innocently.

He looked perplexed; I suppose he just wasn't used to me fighting him to stay. But he'd went out on a limb, asking me to spend the time with him, and no true Double O left a challenge unmet.

He sighed and walked back over, then made himself comfortable in the midst of all my blankets and pillows. He took the ice cream from me.

"You do realize I hate this movie?" He asked.

"Of course." I answered. "But it's just more proof that you can't resist me."

I expected a comeback.

But it never came.

Perhaps it wasn't such a stretch to like him so much…or to hope he liked me.

Two and a half hours later, as the sun set over Terra and the dramatic music played, I looked over at James, who lay asleep beside me, the empty ice cream carton on the table beside him.

He looked so peaceful, but still so strong and reliable. I knew the slightest sound would wake him, and that's how I k new I was safe. I wanted him to stay beside me, I wanted him to stay with me, but the part of me with good sense knew that I had to let him go for now.

I reached over and gently shook his shoulder. "Hey…007! Wake up!" I hissed.

His eyes opened. "Is it over?"

"Yes." I laughed. "It's over."

He rolled out of bed. "Good."

"Hey!" I said, putting on a hurt expression. "I didn't ask you to stay."

"Actually, you did." He smiled mischievously.

I looked down, defeated.

"Don't worry, Snaps." He said. "It's just more proof that you can't resist me."

I felt my cheeks blush. Now it was my turn not to have a comeback.

"James one. Snaps one." He said, smirking, then opened the door to leave, looking back at me one last time.

"You'll get the upper hand again. After all, tomorrow is another day."

He shut the door, and I made a mental note not to eve let him watch that movie again.


	17. Chapter 16 Armed and Dangerous Part 1

Snaps' POV

At last, Saturday came and I found myself in the car on the way to the embassy. Today, there was no cute outfit to wear; I wore jeans with flared bottoms. This was my secret way of hiding guns, Kate's as well. I had on a yellow tank top with these, and my hair was up in a ponytail, out of my way in case I had to shoot.

Lex got out with James, Kate, and I, he was going to cover us on the way in, then wait. He seemed to be convinced that there was no way we could best the security, but he'd never met us.

He once again got us in undetected, by calling the guards outside while we went in and slipped around the metal detectors. He met back up with us in the North Wing as soon as he'd sent the guards on some obscure mission that would end with coffee and doughnuts.

I had to give him one thing, he'd been right about the meeting. The entire place was empty, but for a few guards here and there. Unfortunately, even a few could be hard to get by at times.

Lex led us down the hall to the security video room and stopped. I peered around the corner, and upon seeing it was clear, I cam back around.

"We need a security clearance card." I said in a low voice, and Kate nodded.

"How do you plan on doing that?" He asked skeptically.

"Just get a guard down here, we'll take care of it from there." I said.

Lex looked at Kate questioningly. "It's true." She said.

He chook his head, then got up and left us sitting. I turned back to James and Kate. "All right. Kate, you're going for the surveillance, I assume, I'll slip you the card."

She nodded, then James spoke up. "I'll get the main power."

"Ok." I peered around the corner again and saw Lex coming back up, a stupid-looking guard in tow behind him.

"Good luck." I whispered to them, and stood to leave.

"Wait." James grabbed my arm and I turned back to face him.

"…yes?"

He opened his mouth as though to say something, then shut it again, apparently deciding on an alternate course of action. "Just be careful."

"I can take care of myself." I said quickly.

Default programming.

"But thanks." I added, then gently pulled my arm away and walked around the corner, looking around as though lost.

Lex approached me, appearing oblivious to my identity. "Can I help you, miss?"

I turned their way, but focused on the guard. "Oh, goodness yes. I've lost the tour group and can't seem to find my way back…"

"Well, if you'll wait here, I'll look for them." Lex said, then exited.

The guard looked suspicious, "I thought there was no tour today…"

"There was." I answered calmly. "Students tour on Saturdays, remember?" I took a step closer to him, batting my eyelashes.

"Oh…um…yes." He stammered. He seemed startled, but I didn't care, as long as he was distracted.

I circled around him slowly, teasing him. Well, I was really looking for the card, which I located in his back pocket. "You're so muscular." I said, coming back to face him. "How many times a week to you work out?"

I sauntered back to his side and slowly began reaching one finger into his pocket. Luck was on my side, he didn't seem to notice.

"Uh…twice a week." He puffed out his chest a little and I almost laughed, but I felt the card under my finger and cautiously began pulling it out.

"How much do you lift?" It was halfway out.

"150."

"Wow! How many reps?" Success! I put the card behind my back and felt Kate slip it out and walk away.

"About 20." He answered, smiling proudly.

"Oh…" I exclaimed. The bad thing about this approach, it was easy to get into, hard to get out of.


	18. Chapter 17 Armed and Dangerous Part 2

Kate's POV

I took the access card from Snaps as she continued to flirt with the guard. I smirked as I headed for the surveillance room. I saw that James also went off to complete his part of this endeavor. He cast one more look over his shoulder at Snaps. This didn't surprise me, what did was that Lex fell in step beside me. I looked at him questioningly.

"I want to see if your hacking skills are as good as you say." He said, smirking.

"They are." I assured him.

As we neared the surveillance room, Lex's smirk faded and he actually seemed nervous.

"You're completely at ease with this." He commented.

"I don't see reason not to be." I replied.

"Well, if you're caught, they'll probably kill you."

I nearly laughed. "One, you mean 'if _we_ are caught,' two, I'm used to the threat of being killed, and three, we're not going to be caught."

"You sound so sure." Lex said as we reached the door. I slid the card through the scanner and opened the door.

"Like I said, I don't see reason not to be." I replied with a smirk and entered the surveillance room with Lex on my heels.

He closed the door behind us, as I looked around at the 20-30 TV screens, all were up and running.

"See, I told you we'd be caught." Lex said, waving a hand at the screens. "The security team will be down here in a minute."

"Wait for it." I mumbled and no more than five seconds later did every one of the screens go blank.

"How did…" Lex started to ask as he stared at the screens, shocked.

"James." Was the only answer I gave, as I opened my messenger bag and took out two laptops. One was the one I normally used, the other was a much smaller one I only used to store large amounts of data that weren't going to be in it for too long. I walked over to one of the two desks in the room and lugged a USB cable into it, then the other end into my larger laptop. I turned it on, then took the small laptop over to the screens, and using another USB cable, I plugged it into the computer at the base of the screens and turned it on.

I returned to my laptop and started my work I heard Lex come over and he looked over my shoulder.

"There's no way you're going to get in." He informed me.

"Oh, really?" I asked, looking up at him and smirking again. "I bet I can do it in five minutes or less." I turned back to the computer.

"I'll take that bet." Lex said, I could hear the arrogance in his voice.

"What?" I asked, looking at him sharply.

"I'll take that bet." He repeated.

"No, no. You don't understand, I only bet with my life."

"What do you call this?" He asked, waving a hand at the room.

"This is different."

"Then why did you say it?" He was smirking now and his eyes gleamed with mischief.

"It slipped." I retorted.

"Well, a bet is a bet."

"Fine." I snapped. "It's not like you'll win."

I was about to start typing when Lex took my wrist in his hand, but he was looking at his watch.

"Now you can start." He released my hand and I began to work.

I had to admit their firewall was impressive. It took me all of three minutes just to get by it. Then, there was a small block that needed a password, which was easy to get around. After that, it was on to a final firewall, this one easier to get by, but still difficult.

"Three." Lex said smugly.

Almost there.

"Two."

Just one more thing.

"One."

I bit my lip as I waited for the computer to finish.

"Zero." He said triumphantly at the same moment that I said. "Done!"

"I won." Lex said, showing me his watch. Five minutes and one second.

"One second doesn't count." I said, standing up and going over to my other laptop and hitting enter. It started to copy all the video files from the last few months. Lex followed me.

"Yes, it does."

"No, it doesn't." I replied, going back to my laptop. Again, he followed. I began to shut down the computer and took the USB cable out of both, and returned it and the laptop to my bag.

"Yes, it does." He repeated.

"No, it doesn't." I said firmly.

I did the same to the other laptop once it was done downloading, then headed for the door. Lex grabbed my wrist gently to stop me from leaving.

"Don't you even want to know what I wanted for winning?" Lex asked me, the smugness had somehow vanished from his voice.

"No, because you didn't." I said firmly.

"Fine." He said, then did the last thing I expected. He leaned down and kissed me softly on the lips.

I quickly stepped back and stared at him in shock, then headed for the door again.

"Kate, wait!" He said, catching up with me easily. "I'm sorry, but I won, and-"

"I would prefer not to talk about that right now." I said, not looking at him, I felt heat rising to my cheeks once again.

"Okay." He said, either injured or disheartened, I couldn't decide.

James' POV

Once Snaps had the guard, I turned and started to make my way downstairs to the main power source, but not without one last look at Snaps. I had to force myself not to glare at the guard.

I had always been overprotective, ever since Kate and my parents died, but Snaps was the first person who I wasn't related to who I was so protective of. Even with Vesper, I hadn't been _over_protective. And yesterday, I had enjoyed being with her, even if I had fallen asleep.

It was hard to pull my mind away from this train of thought, as I arrived at my destination. The lock on the door was no trouble, for some reason, no one ever thought to put a lot of security on their power.

Within moments, I had found the uplinks for all the cameras. I loosened the cords so it looked like they had come undone on their own.

That complete, I headed back toward the exit at my usual slow pace, not drawing attention to myself. As I turned a corner, I crossed paths with Kate and Lex. The first thing I saw was that my sister was blushing deeply.

Snaps' POV

Around twenty minutes later, I'd managed to send the guard looking for Lex and the "tour group" and was running through the back halls searching for an exit. By now, the power was off and I had no trouble or worry in opening the door.

I jogged to the car and slid into the driver's seat. Whether Lex knew it or not, I had the keys. For a moment, I missed my car, but a car was a car, as long as it went fast.

Cranking it, I pulled to the back door, guessing that Kate and James would avoid the metal detectors and waited for them to come out.

Lex's POV

'Damnit!' I thought as James raised an eyebrow at Kate.

"You're blushing." He stated questioningly.

But Kate only rolled her clear blue eyes at her brother. "We ran into another guard and I tried using Snaps' approach, and it worked, but you know how I am." The annoyance was clear in her voice, she almost had me convinced that had actually been what happened.

James laughed a bit and replied, "Katie, you should leave that to Snaps from now on."

"I had no choice!" She protested as we continued down the hall.

I shook my head in disbelief as I walked just behind the siblings. It seemed that lying was another one of Kate's hidden talents.

By the time we reached the back doors, Kate's blushing had died away. I was surprised when I saw my car waiting on us with Snaps in the driver's seat. James climbed in the front seat before I could, so I had to sit next to Kate in back, which was probably not the safest place for me to be.

As Snaps pulled out, I asked, "How did you get my keys?" She only smirked.

"We're all excellent pick pockets." Kate said, she was leaning back on the seat with her eyes closed.

"Headache?" James asked her, she nodded in reply.

"Was it hard to get in?" Snaps asked, disbelievingly.

"They had a nice firewall." She said.

The remainder of the ride back to the hotel was quiet and Kate never did open her eyes.

I shouldn't have kissed her. I shouldn't have cared what she thought. I shouldn't have still been staring at her. But I was and I did and I still couldn't believe that I did.

I only had one objective her, and I needed, no, had to focus on that. It was just so hard with her on my mind. Damnit!

Kate's POV

AS soon as Snaps stopped the car at the hotel, I jumped out and went straight to our room. I still couldn't believe that James and Snaps bought the whole 'headache' thing! That gave me the freedom to fun as far away from Lex as I could right then.

He kissed me! Why the bloody hell had he done that?! I wanted to scream or punch him or something!

Once safely inside mind and Snaps' room, I got a cup and filled it half full, then sat it on my nightstand and lay down on my bed. This way, Snaps would still think my head hurt and I could think.

A few minutes later, I heard footsteps, and then a key turning in the door and Snaps came in the room.

"Head still hurting?" She asked.

"Yeah." I replied with a sigh.

"Well, just try and rest. I'm gonna go play poker with James. We'll all go over what information you got tomorrow." She said, headed for the door again.

"Sounds good to me." I said, rolling over so my back was to her.

A moment later, I heard the door close and the one across the hall open after a knock.

I jumped up and started pacing. My thoughts were racing. Nothing like this had ever happened to me. Why me?! My life had been so simple, well…simple for a Double O. Until today! I tried to think of any reason why he would have done that, because the one that I couldn't get out of my mind frightened me.

Seeing as my thoughts were ringing in my mind, I hadn't heard the approaching footsteps and jumped when there was a knock at my door.

I opened it and closed it right back upon seeing him standing there looking at his feet.

"Go away!" I hissed through the door.

"Kate, please. I just want to talk." Came his reply.

"Well, I don't!"

"Kate, please." The pleading in his voice amazed me.

"Why do you care so much?"

"I don't even know."

I sighed and opened the door, but didn't let him in.

"I'm sorry. I was out of line."

"You think?" I said sarcastically.

"I shouldn't have…done that. Again, I'm sorry." He turned to leave and as I watched him go, I realized I was no longer angry with him.

'I can't get emotionally involved!' I told myself sadly as I closed the door, and for the rest of the night, this thought echoed in my mind.


	19. Chapter 18 L'aissez Faire

Snaps' POV

The following day, we all gathered in Kate's and my room (probably because it was cleanest) and watched the videos. All the hallways, we ignored, but we let the ones on the main offices play, keeping an eye on the major leaders of Lebanon.

Unlike America, Lebanon has no White House or President. No Senate or House of Representatives, nor a Parliamentary system like England. All power comes from the small central government and the wealthy who had good enough connections to control it. All major power came from this embassy.

Unfortunately, major power is usually boring on film.

Since Kate had gotten months' worth of footage, it was extremely monotonous fast forwarding through so much dead air.

Everyone but Lex ended up falling asleep, and he was left fast forwarding for almost an hour.

And somehow, I ended up asleep on James' shoulder.

I woke up when he'd slid out from under my head carefully, putting a pillow in his place. I kept my eyes closed, though anyone paying attention would have noticed y blush.

Kate was asleep on her own bed, and James sat down in front of the laptop, taking over so Lex could rest.

I fell back asleep, sighing in content, feeling safe.

When I woke gain, James was waking Kate, saying he'd found something. I sat up before he could get to me and stood, heading for the laptop.

"What is it" I asked.

"You're going to laugh." James said.

I looked at him, but he just started the video.

We saw the prime leader sitting at his desk, writing something.

"What's so great about that?" Kate asked.

"Patience is a virtue." James said.

Kate mocked him behind his back, but I managed not to laugh.

A minute or two later, a man entered the office, tall and dark-haired, and Lex fidgeted nervously, though none of us caught it. He and the leader talked, and the strange man offered him a document and a pen.

"Watch." James said, fast forwarding. "He never signs it."

Sure enough, though they talked for a long while, the pen never met the paper.

I looked at Lex curiously. "What is his name?"

"You're looking at the office of Aban Bashir. He's in charge of all economic affairs."

I nodded, then redirected my attention as James stopped the tape. "Now watch."

The two men exited and James brought up a window with the hall surveillance, where we watched the two go through a side door.

"Where does that lead?" Kate asked.

"The basement." Lex answered.

James brought up office surveillance again. "This is one hour and 45 minutes later." He said.

The two returned, and without a word, Aban signed the contract on his desk. They shook hands and the visitor left.

"Interesting." Kate said.

"We need to know what he signed." I added.

No." James answered. "We need to know what they did to him to make him sign."


	20. Chapter 19 Something

Kate's POV

Kate's POV

Having talked it over, James, Snaps and I were going to break into the embassy again tonight to see if we would be able to find anything in the basement. Seeing as it was Sunday and after hours, only a few night guards would be there.

It had been a week since mine and Lex's…incident (that sounds like a good way to put it, or at least it sounds better that way in my head). I had been avoiding him as much as possible and talking to him as little as I could. I'd been praying that Snaps and James hadn't noticed, but I was beginning to wonder.

The problem, or at least the largest of them, was how I felt. It shocked and worried me, because I wanted to talk to him, I wanted to be near him. Even if everything I ever knew or had learned was yelling at me not to…as usual, I listened to that part of me.

After we arrived at the embassy, we made our way toward the basement, dodging the guards and cameras as we went. James quickly picked the lock on the door and we followed him down the narrow stairwell. At the foot of the stairs, there was a short, dimly lit corridor with a large metal door that had pealing red paint on it.

Amazingly, the door was unlocked, but no light shown out from the room that lay behind it. I felt along the cold wall and found a light switch, though it didn't help much.

The only light in the small room was a dim light bulb that hung down in the center of it. There was a small desk and two chairs, but nothing else.

Snaps started to dig through the drawers of the desk.

"Well, this was pointless." She mumbled after finding nothing.

"Wait." I said, looking under the desk. "I see something white."

"Got it." Snaps held up a paper. "Oh, please tell me this is what I think it is!"

She handed the paper to James and I looked over it as well.

"A receipt?" James asked.

"Not just a receipt. I said.

"An internet receipt." Snaps added, smirking.


	21. Chapter 20 Square Piece

Snaps' POV

Snaps' POV

We returned to the hotel and immediately went to find Lex. He was in his room, talking on the phone, but he hung up as we entered.

"What did you find?" He asked eagerly.

"A receipt." Kate said as James laid it on the bed next to the laptops.

"Only a receipt?" He said incredulously. "How will that-"

"A credit card receipt." I corrected kate.

Lex looked shocked for a moment, but recovered quickly. "Oh…that's, that's good?"

"It's the best we could have hoped for." James said. He was busy opening the laptop and booting itup. "We need you to tell us what site to search, make it government, we have clearance."

I looked at him out of the corner of my eye. We didn't have Lebanon Intelligence clearance…we didn't even have London Intelligence clearance…although I'd never understand why. Sure, we could kill people, but we couldn't handle government clearance.

Nevrtheless, Lex fell for it.

"Give me the computer." I took it from James and handed it to Lex, who quickly typed in a site, broke down about six firewalls, and gave somewhere around ten passwords. When he handed the computer back, we were in the system.

I sat down on the bed, the computer on my lap. Kate may have been the hacking queen, but searcing wasn't her talent.

"Ok." James said, sitting down beside me. "We just want his name, nothing fancy."

"Got it." I said, already finished. I slid the laptop overto him.

Lex looked up, his head had been in his hands. "You found it already?"

I nodded, proud of myself.

"We're lucky this guy is stupid enough to print receipts when he orders off the Internet." Kate said.

"And carry them in his pocket when he goes out." I added.

"Well, if all of them were smart, we'd never catch them." James said, smiling at me.

I laughed, smiling back at him. I felt so happy, being with him, being near him, and for a minute, I wishedthat we were alone, I almost felt like we were alone, or if we weren't, we needed to be. I had the strongest urge to kiss him, tell him everything. Let him know, see if he felt the same…

But only for that fleeting second, then all the sounds came back, all of everything squeezed back in…including my fear of rejection. Not rejection in general, just his.

"So." I said, clearing my throat. "Who is this guy, Lex?"

He seemed to be coming out of a doze, again. "What? Oh." He stood and walked over. After a quick glance at the screen, he blanched and said softly, "Ali Shehab." Then he was silent.

We all looked at him expectantly, surely he didn't think we recognized the name.

Lex let out a sigh. "That's the wealthy man I told you about when you first arrived. We evaluated the security at his house, remember?"

We all nodded, but I still misunderstood his shock. "Is this surprising?"

"No." Lex answered. "It was just…fast."

"We _have_ to work fast." James said simply. He then handed the computer back to me. "What did he buy, Snaps?"

Lex stood and left abruptly, saying he had to make a phone call to report in. James and I watched him go, then turned to Kate.

"What's his problem?" James asked her.

"He is acting awfully strange." I added.

"Why are you aking me?!" She snapped. "How should I know?"

I blinked in shock, and felt James tense next to me. "Calm down, we were only asking."

"I am calm!" She sat down on the opposite bed, arms crossed. "What did he buy?"

Subject change.

I typed rapidly, then a small screen popped up with all his purchases for the past year.

"What's the receipt dated?" I asked.

James looked. "September 5."

"A motherboard." I said.

"A motherboard?" Kate exclaimed. "Do you think that has anything to do with all of this?"

"No way of knowing." I said. "It could have nothing to do with it at all."

"Or." James said, meeting our eyes. "It could have everything to do with it."

There was somber silence for a moment, then Kate spoke. "One can only hope."


	22. Chapter 21 Confusion

Kate's POV

Kate's POV

I had paced up and down this short hallway for the last hour. Snaps and James had went down to the casino and probably wouldn't be back any time soon. I was determined to do this. I could do this. I needed to. If only I could get up enough courage to.

Damnit!

I paced outside of Lex's door; I needed to talk to him. I was tired of avoiding him, tired of snapping at James and Snaps. Tired of being confused. And bloody tired of almost every damn thing.

Taking a deep breath, I knocked a few moments later and the door opening, revealing a very surprised Lex.

"Kate?"

"We need to talk." I said simply.

"That's what I've been saying for the past two weeks." He said, not in the nicest tone either as he let me in his room.

I rolled my eyes and turned with arms folded to face him once inside. He closed the door and leaned against it, hands in his pockets, looking down at me, waiting.

"Look, I'm going back to London after all of this is over." I said.

"Then why are you here?"

"I don't even know." I said, sighing. "I should probably go."

But Lex didn't move as I took a few steps closer to the door.

"Move, Lex."

"No." He said with a smile. "We're not done talking yet."

"Oh, really?"

He nodded. "You wouldn't have come here if you didn't feel something. You'd have just gone on avoiding me until it was time for you to return home."

I looked down, knowing he was right. "All I feel is confused." I mumbled.

I heard Lex take a step toward me, and then he lifted my chin so I had to look into his deep brown eyes. I took a step back, worried about what happened the last time we'd been this close.

"Don't." I warned.

"I won't." He promised. He paused and took in a deep breath. "Kate, I'm confused too. But I care about you."

I nodded and said hardly above a whisper, "I can't get emotionally involved."

"I think it's a little late for that." Lex said, brushing a strand of hair out of my eyes.

My heart raced. I would've given almost anything to kiss him right then, but my Double O programming ran too deep.

"I have to go." I mumbled, and was out the door before Lex could stop me. It wasn't until I got back to mine and Snaps' room that I realized that my vision was blurred by unshed tears.

I blinked them back, ashamed of myself. For a lot of things, maybe too many.


	23. Chapter 22 Meanwhile

M walked rapidly down the corridor leading from her office to the Double Os' living quarters. Her heels clicked loudly, and her arms swung, tensed furiously at her side. Her mouth was set in a thin straight line, the vein on the left side of her neck throbbing.

In a word, she was furious, in two words, very furious, in three words, rather pissed off.

Not only had she paged Dyna and Jack to her office no less than four times, but she'd called their rooms personally, no answer. Either they were very brave, or they were so busy discovering they belong together that they'd gone tone deaf.

'God.' She thought angrily. 'You can't run a simple business anymore for the love affairs.'

She turned down the next hallway, passing 005, 006, and 007's closed doors along the way. She hadn't gotten a report from them yet, but she wasn't worried. It was routine for 007 not to call unless he needed something. Bad apples always infected the good ones, and he was a pretty bad one.

'Perhaps I was wrong to partner them.' She thought, she'd never second-guessed herself so much in one damn week.

At last, she reached Dyna's door. Funny, she hadn't remembered the walk being quite that long.

She knocked, not gently.

No reply.

She knocked again. Nothing.

Cursing under her breath, she took out her master key and unlocked the door. Opening it, her eyes met a startling sight.

Everything lay on the floor, anything that was glass broken, even the window, probably the exit, since the door was locked from the inside. There had been a struggle, and a rough one at that.

M quickly went to Jack's room, discovering it in the same condition.

She immediately went to the intercom in the corridor and paged a team. This was bad, two Double O's MIA, the other three in Lebanon.

It could only mean one of two things. Either there were two world-domination plans going into action at once, or they had been too late in Lebanon and the terrorists were already in London.

The latter was more likely.

Which was scary as hell.


	24. Chapter 23 In His Mind

Snaps' POV

Snaps' POV

The next week, the first week of December, we made our way to the home of Ali Shehab. Lex had somehow planned this at a most opportune time in which the diplomat would not be home, but we arrived a little early and hunkered down in the bushes to wait for his departure.

I was just starting to cramp when a limo arrived and the front door opened. James put his hand on my back and pushed me lower.

"I was fine." I hissed. "He wouldn't have seen me."

He didn't answer, but my heart fluttered as his hand stayed on my back.

The diplomat was not passing our bushes, as close to us as he was going to get, and I caught a glimpse of his face. I scrunched up my eyes. He looked so familiar…but I could not quite place where I'd seen him.

Finally, he got into the limo and it left, the guards that had led him out going back into the mansion.

We all stood abruptly, we already knew we were out of the line of sight for any of the cameras.

I looked at James, whose hand was still on my back, though it seemed like his mind had moved on to something else. I liked it, but I couldn't let him know that.

'Wait…why not?' I thought suddenly. 'Why can't I let him know?'

'Because. You don't want him to say he doesn't love you…because you love him, and you know it. You don't just like him…you love him.'

I suddenly wanted to cry. I felt so alone. I had friends, I had my work, I had Kate, but I was alone. I could be standing a breath away from James, and feel lonely, because I was so sure he didn't feel the same. I actually felt my eyes beginning to water, everything was so close to spilling out…

"Hey, Snaps!" Kate waved a hand in front of my face. "Both of you! Come on!" She shook her head and turned to walk for the back entrance, Lex falling in behind her.

I reached up and wiped my eye just as a tear spilled out, only just catching it in time.

James' hand moved up to my shoulder. "Are you all right?"

I shrugged his hand off and began following Kate. "Yes. Something in my eye." I cleared my throat, walking in a determined manner, trying to go back into emotionless Double O mode.

'Good luck with that.' I told myself.

Once inside, the usual 'anonymous' call distracted the guards long enough to search the entire bloody house from top to bottom. Each time we met back up, it was only to report that we'd found nothing at all except a few close shaves with nosy security officers.

At last, we'd checked all there was to check, and met back up at the exit.

I was the last to arrive, and James, Kate and Lex all stared at me expectantly, a sign that I was the last hope.

I put my hands on my hips and shook my head. "Nothing."

"Brilliant." Kate muttered.

James didn't say anything, just seemed deep in thought, about what, I did not know and couldn't guess. He cast me a concerned glance every now and then, he knew I wasn't usually this quiet. Hell, even Lex knew I wasn't usually this quiet. Between Kate and I'd strange behavior, he probably wasn't getting any sleep.

We snuck back to our car through the bushes and all silently got in. James and I in back, Kate and Lex in front. I didn't even fight for the keys, and the whole way home, I only looked out the window, feeling the occasional stare on the back of my neck from James.

We had just gotten out of the car at the hotel when I stopped suddenly.

"I realize where I've seen him!"

"Who?" James asked.

"Ali Shehab! You've both seen him too! He's the man on the tape!"

The looked at me blankly.

"That man that took Aban Bashir to the basement! The man with the papers!"

Realization dawned on their faced and James turned to Lex.

"Why didn't you tell us?" James asked him roughly.

"Must have slipped my mind." He answered, shrugging.

"That was important information!" I said.

"Don't let anything else 'slip your mine!'" James said through gritted teeth. He walked past Lex, making sure to catch his shoulder with his own as he passed.

"Somebody needs a nap." Kate said louder than necessary.

James took one last backward glance, catching my eye. When I looked away, he turned back. He let out an aggravated breath and entered the hotel.

Kate looked at me suspiciously, but I ignored it and walked toward the beach. I needed to think, and I didn't want anyone talking to me but the waves.


	25. Chapter 24 You Know

Kate's POV

Kate's POV

I followed James to his room as Snaps went to the beach and Lex went to his own room. Knocking on the door, I could hear him pacing inside.

"Snaps, I don't want to talk right now." He called.

I smirked and tried not to laugh. Had Lex made me so blind that I hadn't seen them growing closer? Maybe just a little.

"Guess again, brother dearest." I said.

He opened the door quickly after that. "Sorry, Katie."

'Don't worry about it, Romeo." I teased as I easily pushed past him.

He rolled his eyes at me after closing the door. "So, you have been paying attention."

I nodded. "A little. Sometimes it's hard to miss the way you two look at each other."

He smiled a bit at that. "We're not the only ones looking." His tone was harsh.

"It just slipped his mind." I said. "It happens to everyone."

"Kate, you know we're not-"

"I know." I cut him off.

"Just be careful." He placed a hand on my shoulder. "Something just feels wrong."

'I will be, if you are." I headed for the door. I had my hand on the handle. "Oh, and you should think of telling Snaps."

I opened the door and started toward my room.

"Telling her what?" James asked, sticking his head out of the room.

I didn't look back, just called over my shoulder.

"You know what."

Snaps' POV

The next few days, we all sort of seemed in bad moods, especially James and I. We had been there a month and had nothing to report, which was why we didn't. Needless to say, I went to the beach a lot. I was torn between wanting to see James and wanting to run away so I wouldn't feel like I was just waiting for rejection.

Up until then, just liking him hadn't been a problem. It had been like in school, when you had a crush, you liked him, but you forgot him when he moved away and never thought about it again. But once you admitted to yourself that you loved someone, that was it. You'd pretty much resigned to chaining your heart and happiness to them. It's like if they leave you behind, you're bound to your place, and the farther away they get, the more strings holding your heart in break, and eventually, the chain that held you together doesn't break, it just rips your heart out with it, because the chain is stronger than the heart ever was.

These thoughts filled my head each day as I sat in the sand, and all the rules about no emotional involvement in MI6 suddenly made sense. AS hard as it was to admit, it was too dangerous…it was too dangerous to love someone. Instead of losing one person through death, you lost two, them and the one they loved.

For the first time in my life, I resented being a Double O. Love had done this to me, so in a way, I resented James.

But I loved him so much I felt I'd burst.

And no matter how many times I ran to the beach, I could not run from my heart. My damn heart.

So there I sat, yet again, on the beach in jeans and my thin yellow jacket. My hair was down, blowing behind me in the sea breeze. I would have loved to be barefoot, but the strange Lebanon weather made it too cold to do so. I was looking out to the waves, a solemn expression on my face, when I felt someone else's presence.

I looked over my shoulder to see James, standing behind me, hands in the pockets of his khaki pants, and a dark polo shirt on.

My heart leapt, and then sank, remembering my predicament quickly. I turned back to the ocean, not wanting him to see my face.

He sat down next to me.

"All right. This has to stop. What is wrong with you? Why won't you look at me? Why won't you talk to me?"

I sighed. "I have my reasons."

"I know you do! I want to know what they are!"

I put my head in my hands. "Don't yell at me. It's not helping!"

"I know!" He yelled anyway, and stood back up, looking down at me. "I don't know how to help! I don't know what you want me to do, or I'd do it!"

I stood up, looking him in the eye. "I…I want…"

He looked at me expectantly.

'Just say it.' I thought. 'Just say it…say "I want you to love me."'

But that wasn't what came out.

"You can't give me what I want."

He took my shoulders in his hands, shaking me lightly. "Maybe I can. Just tell me!"

I turned from him, and his hands slid off my shoulders reluctantly. I crossed my arms, my back still to him.

"Why won't you just tell me?!" he asked.

"Because you won't understand! You don't know what I'm going through!"

"You don't know that!"

I put my hand back to my head again, my eyes squeezed together to keep from crying. I heard a sigh, then approaching footsteps. A hand touched my back lightly in the curve.

"Please, Snaps. Just talk to me again. Next to Kate…you're my best friend."

I closed my eyes. "Is that all I am, James?"

Silence, a piece of hope.

Even though I knew this relationship could never be, not in an eternity…

I would be satisfied if he loved me.

But he hadn't said it…and I was still there, he was still there, nothing else, not what I wanted.

He put his arms around me, hugging me from behind, placing his cheek on mine. I took a breath and put my hands on his arms, gripping him for dear life.

"Whatever I did, I'm sorry."

'It's what you haven't done, but-'

"I forgive you."


	26. Chapter 25 Haze of Doubt

M hung up the phone for what seemed like the hundredth time. She'd been trying all her Double Os' cell phones for the past hour, even the guide on the Lebanon mission. No one was answering, and she was very close to going for a drink. Her country infiltrated, she was furious.

She picked up the phone again, dialing 007's number, it rung half a time, and the recording she expected replayed in her ear.

"The number you have dialed has been disconnected, if you would like-"

She slammed the phone into the cradle, again, sighing and putting her hand on her temple.

There was a knock at her door and she said irritably, "Come in."

Her assistant entered, although she was too tired to notice how dazed he looked as he approached.

"Yes, John?" She asked, looking up.

He came forward, and then spoke, his voice borderline monotone, and M would kick herself later for not seeing the signs. "You have a visitor."

She waved her hand dismissively. "Send him away. I'm in the middle of something." She hadn't told anyone about her problems yet. She didn't need it leaking out to the public that London was infiltrated.

"It's very important." John said, eyes looking only straight ahead.

"Fine! Send him in."

John turned and left, leaving the door open for the visitor.

M stood, smoothing her blazer.

The man strode in, walking straight to the desk at a fast pace. M immediately knew something was wrong. She reached for the handgun in her desk drawer.

But not fast enough.

She heard an aerosol emitter detonate, and her head hit the desk.

One solid hour later, M felt herself walk into her office and pick up the phone. _She_ didn't do it. She _felt_ herself do it, though she wasn't sure if it was voluntarily or involuntarily, she was doing it.

Everything was hazy as her finger dialed the Lebanon guide's number. Lex…that was his name.

She heard the dial tone, and she realized she felt different.

She felt…programmed.


	27. Chapter 26 Cruel Surprise

Kate's POV

Kate's POV

"Okay." Snaps said, taking out a notepad and pen. "What do we know so far?"

We were all in mine and Snaps' room, talking about what information we had already. It was good to have Snaps back; I'd been worried about her for the past week. She seemed to spend every moment of light down at the beach. Now, she was sitting on her bed with James beside her. I could tell by his troubled eyes that he hadn't told Snaps how much he cared for her, but they were speaking again, and that was at least a step in the right direction.

Lex and I too were talking again, though not a lot, and he sat with me on my bed, but not as close as James was to Snaps.

"Ali Shehab bought a motherboard and did something to Aban Bashir at the embassy." I said, and Snaps wrote it down.

She looked around at all of us. "That can't be it…can it?"

"That, and he was stupid enough to printing the Internet receipt." James added.

"So…what do we need to find?" Snaps asked.

"If this has anything to do with the rise in gas prices." I said.

"And what he is up too anyway." James stated.

"All right, now how are we-" Snaps started, but the ringing of a phone stopped her.

We all pulled out our cell phones, but Lex's was the one ringing.

"Hello?" He asked, and after a few moments, he handed the phone to me and he looked a little confused. "I think it's for you or James."

Taking the phone, I said, "Hello?"

"Bond?" The voice sounded like M, only something was out of place.

'Yes?"

"005, where is 007?" She demanded.

I rolled my eyes and handed the phone to James. "It's M, she wants to talk to you."

As James stood and began to talk to M, he paced on the far side of the room. I looked down at my phone, the screen was black. I tried cutting it on, but nothing happened.

"My phone is dead." I mumbled. "Last night, it had a full battery."

Snaps flipped open her phone. "Mine's dead too…" She reached over and picked up James' phone. "So is his…"

I looked at Lex. "How did MI6 get your contact info?"

He shrugged. "I guess they have all my info, seeing as I'm a guide for you three."

I nodded slowly, still unsure. Something seemed wrong.

"James, what is it?" Snaps asked. James had hung up with M and was now looking at the floor.

"I'm being re-stationed in North Lebanon." He said. "Alone."


	28. Chapter 27 Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow

Snaps' POV

Snaps' POV

The next day, I solemnly helped James pack what little he'd brought back up. I noticed him place a gun on his belt, but didn't say anything. It wasn't unusual for him to carry a gun, but this time was different.

It seemed like we both knew something big was coming.

We finished quickly and I looked at my watch. "It's time." I said sadly, going and opening his door as he slung his bag over his shoulder. The car to take him to the helicopter would be there any minute.

It was a silent walk down to the exit. I supposed neither of us knew what to say. It felt like something heavy was between us in the air. I could have touched him, but I couldn't have at the same time.

We reached the doors and I stopped, figuring this would be goodbye.

He turned to face me, as though preparing for something huge.

"Hmmmm?" I answered.

"I…do you…do you want to ride with me?"

"All right." I said without hesitation. It was hard to believe I'd been running from him for a whole week before.

Once in the car, it was silent again, and I began to wonder if he had something to tell me…why would he have asked me to ride with him if he wanted quiet for company?

Still, though, nothing, and before I knew it, the helipad was in sight.

I let out a heavy sigh as I opened my door, and he came around to my side.

"What's the matter? Sad to see me go?" He asked with a smirk.

I nodded, more serious than he ever could have imagined.

His smile faded as we walked toward the helicopter. The blade began to whirl and my ponytail flew wildly behind me as it gained speed.

I looked at James, squinting against the man-made wind.

"Be careful." I said, just loud enough to hear above the whirring.

I turned to go, but then his voice reached my ears.

"Snaps?"

I turned back, but he was already there, closer to me than ever before.

In one smooth movement, he took my head in his hands and lowered his lips to mine. He kissed me passionately, wrapping his arms around my shoulders and holding me close. I brought my hands up and lightly held his shoulders, killing back intensely, meaningfully, but gently. My mind hadn't even registered the shock of my situation, my heart had taken control. And I kissed him, did what I wanted to do, and not what I had to do, for the first time in my life.

All too soon, he pulled away, but didn't leave. He leaned down to my ear, his arms still around me.

"Snaps…I love you. I've always loved you, and I'll never stop. Is this what you wanted? It's all I want now…"

Before I could answer, he kissed my cheek and turned away, striding to the helicopter.

I looked on, shielding my eyes as it took flight, hovering a moment before heading North.

I don't know how long I stood there, taking it all in, staring at the now empty sky, wishing he'd given me a chance to say what he'd said to me back. Those first few minutes he was gone seemed to last forever, and I missed him already…and wondered how long I would have to live knowing that he didn't know I loved him back.

Third Person

"The codes are on their way." Ali said. "But it will take a few days to arrive, so you have time to get them, just don't let them out of your sight, Carter!"

"Yes, sir." He replied. "How long do I have?'

"Three days at most. Don't lose them, it should be easy now that the other one is out of the way."

"Yes, sir." He seemed hesitant.

"Goodbye."

Click.

'Damn it.' He thought. 'How am I going to do this?'


	29. Chapter 28 Why?

Kate's POV

Kate's POV

The days following James' relocation were…interesting. Snaps went to the beach a lot, I stayed up in our room, and Lex was hardly at the hotel, and when he was, he didn't talk to me much.

The fourth morning after he left, it rained, and Snaps just sat at the window of our room. I decided to go down to the lobby and get a cup of coffee.

Halfway to the elevator, I heard a door open and I turned to see Lex coming out of his room. We stared at each other for a moment, and then he went back through his door, closing it behind him. I continued on, trying to act like nothing had happened, but just before I got on the elevator, I heard a door open again, some footsteps, and a soft knock.

I was surprised when I returned to our room that Lex was there, and Snaps appeared to be asleep in her chair. Lex was sitting on the edge of my bed, his face in his hands. He stood up when I closed the door and walked over to me.

"Kate…" He seemed unsure and nervous. "I just want you to know that I had no choice and-"

"Lex, what are you talking about?"

"I'm sorry, Kate."

An aerosol sound was the last thing I remember hearing before my world turned dark.


	30. Chapter 29 Betrayor

Snaps' POV

Snaps' POV

I opened my eyes, confused before I even took in my surroundings. The last thing I remembered was…Lex. Lex coming in to say hello, but that was all.

Presently though, that was the least of my worries.

I was chained to a dark stone wall, my bonds jutting from the dark interior of the mountain above my head. Or, at least, it felt like a mountain. The air was heavy and dank, suffocating. I felt like I was breathing liquid mush, and knew I would begin to wheeze soon.

The white T-shirt I was in was already filthy, but my jean legs were intact, and my first thought was to see if they'd gotten my gun.

When Kate and I wore jeans, we kept out guns in holsters around our calves. I rubbed my legs together, but my hopes died when I felt only the holster.

'Damn it…' I cursed silently.

Apparently, they weren't quite so stupid.

I threw my body weight against the chains, hoping that they might be as old as this cave. But they were as strong as I could have hoped they wouldn't be, and I fell back to the wall in exasperation.

Looking up, I found the chains not anchored in the stone as I'd thought, but to a pully system.

I looked around again, trying to appraise as much of my surroundings as possible from my knees. The door that locked me in was metal, although I couldn't tell how thinck from my position. The lock appeared simple, only a small key-release, it could have been shot out with a gun…if I'd had a gun. There was no window.

Sighing aloud, I leaned back against the wall, knowing there was nothing that I could do.

For now.

I hadn't realized that my eyes had fallen shut until they shot open again at the sound of the metal door screeching open on its un-oiled hinges.

Over the hour before sleep had overcome me, my mind had gone through every possible person that could have done this. I had come to so many conclusions it was ridiculous. But the person who walked in had not been on my list.

Lex.

I felt my mouth drop open, despite my usual Double O composure, and I backed further against the wall as he approached.

"We trusted you…" I hiss harshly, scowling up at him.

Even he looked ashamed, staring at me in pity.

"Don't look at me that way!" I said. "Don't look at me like you feel sorry for me." I had the strongest urge to spit in his face, if I could've spit that far…

"You have to understand-" He began, but I interrupted.

"Oh, I do understand. I understand completely." I looked at him dangerously. "Your turn, I hope you understand what will happen to you if I ever get out of these chains and you're within reach."

He looked as though hew as in pain, and nodded slightly. It was obvious that he'd expected this reaction.

I was still glaring at him when he lifted his head again. "I'm sorry."

"No, you're not…not to me." My eyes softened a bit. "You haven't seen Kate, have you? She doesn't know it was you." I said. "Forget James and I, how could you do this to her?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." He said quickly.

"Fine." I said, turning away. He was already beating himself up about it, he didn't need my help. "You can't lie to her forever."

He turned to go, stopping with his hand on the door. "I know." He said softly.

As he existed, another man entered with a whip.

And Lex closed the door on the way out as he left, not a word of apology, not a hint of regret…

Out loud.


	31. Chapter 30 The Question is Why?

Snaps' POV

Snaps' POV

Five long days had passed since Kate and I had been dumped in the God-forsaken mountain. I hadn't seen her, but somehow, I knew she was here somewhere.

I could only pray she wasn't going through what I was.

Since our arrival, every day had been a living hell. Physically and emotionally.

I don't need to explain what the purpose of the man with the whip was. That happened at least twice a day…if I was lucky. Usually, it was more. And they didn't stop there; they punched, kicked, slapped and hit whatever they could reach, which was everything. My face was bruised, no, everything was bruised or cut. My back was split open in several places, the T-shirt in bloody strips in the back. I didn't even want to see it; I could imagine what it looked like.

And on the inside, my heart hurt almost as much as my back.

I missed James.

I missed seeing him, and hearing him, even arguing with him.

I hated myself for not telling him how much I loved him when he left. He hadn't given me much of a chance, but I just kept thinking that I could have tried so much harder. I should have run after him, screamed his name, anything but just let him go. If I died here, he would never know how I felt, he'd live his whole life thinking I didn't love him, or worse…find someone else.

Every now and then, tears would roll out of my eyes and wet my emotionless face. The salt stung in the tiny cuts, but that pain was nothing compared to this. I felt alone…again. And I was scared that I would die alone.

I wondered if he was in trouble, if he even knew anything was wrong yet. 'So help me, if they hurt him…' I thought.

But through all this, a big part of me realized how lucky I was with James.

Lex had betrayed Kate.

Well, he had betrayed all of us, but mostly her.

I hoped she was all right, Kate had never been the sulky type, but this was big. I knew her, she'd never cared for anyone like she did for him.

I sighed aloud, feeling sorry for her, hating Lex, missing James, my back stinging.

But through all of this, my biggest question was 'why?'

Why were we here? We hadn't found anything out, we were practically back to square one when this happened…

But maybe we'd been so close they'd gotten scared.

But even so, why nearly kill us every day? Was all this really necessary?

'Well, technically, it never is…' I thought.

So why?

My door opened again and the man I'd nicknamed "Sledgehammer" in my head entered. I'd named him that because his arm had to be at least that strong to whip as hard as he did.

"Ready?" He asked, smiling and wringing the whip in his hands.

I looked up defiantly, not answering, just keeping my mouth shut, as I always did when he hit me. It killed him that I wouldn't cry out, but I wasn't weak, not that weak.

His smiled faded and he pulled the door closed behind him, plunging me into the semidarkness that registered in my head as one of two things.

Lonely sorrow…or pain.

Mostly both.


	32. Chapter 31 The Key to Everything

December 26 had arrived, and M was working on a security team for the New Years celebration at Big Ben. With all the strange things going on lately, she wanted max protection for the citizens.

Her computer glitched a bit, but she dismissed it.

Until it happened again…bigger this time. She looked at it suspiciously, until finally, a window popped up.

Her mouth dropped open. In ten second increments, each Double O file, including her, Ripley and Web's flashed across the screen.

All their statuses read 'Inactive.'

They'd been demoted, all of them.

But only she knew the codes…

Just before she got up to do something about it, a message window appeared over the status files.

What it said made a chill run up her spine.

'Thanks for the codes, M. Couldn't have done it without you.'

It disappeared just as her computer went completely black.

She flopped back down into her chair, mouth still slightly open.

This was her fault.

Two Double O's missing, the other three's locations unknown in Lebanon.

It was all her fault.


	33. Chapter 32 The Truth

Snaps' POV

Snaps' POV

I almost lost track of how long it had been since we'd been put here, but not completely. Counting the days was all that kept me sane.

'Nine days…' I kept thinking. 'No more, no less. Nine.'

My eyes fluttered between open and closed, flitting like hummingbird wings. My chin rested on my chest, each movement making my muscles burn and back ache.

So far, I had seen no one other than the sledgehammer and Lex, so when my door opened to reveal someone different, I was surprised even through my fatigue.

It was Ali Shehab.

Unlike with Lex, this man _had_ been on my list. And he seemed upset that I didn't appear more shocked than I did.

He came in wearing a light suit, as though he'd just come from a government meeting and I immediately resented him even more than I had in my head.

"Good evening." He said, placing his hands behind his back and smiling as though he was a doctor and I was a patient. I didn't respond though, I was hardly awake.

"I just thought I would come explain to you the reason for your company."

"I wouldn't mind knowing." I said faintly.

"This…" He gestured to everything around us. "Lebanon. It's hardly the center of everything. M took the bait I hadn't even cast yet, but it worked to my advantage. I needed you all out of London anyway…for the grand finale. And I, or course, had to hold you up here so you couldn't try to leave. But now, you have no way home anyway."

I was so confused as I looked at him, too interested to fall into unconsciousness, but not interested enough to move, kick him, anything. It was like my brain no longer had control over my muscles. "What are you talking about?" I whispered hoarsely.

"Even if I unchained you, which isn't likely, you and your buddies have been demoted. And brainwashing technology is irresistibly easy to use while breaching the central intelligence agency of a country."

He paced in front of me, taking pleasure in my expression as I caught on.

"What are you going to do?" I asked. "What are you planning?"

He stopped, then put his face so close to mine, I could smell his rancid breath.

"Let's just say the New Years celebration will be…explosive." He chuckled and left, before I even had a chance to respond.

I could only think one word.

'Damnit.'

But at least now I knew why we were here, simply to keep us from going home.


	34. Chapter 33 BrokenHearted Fools

Kate's POV

Kate's POV

Amazing.

I didn't think something could hurt worse than my back right now, but something did, even as my blood dripped from the newly made cuts on my shoulders to my lower back. For a time the cracking of whip was the only thing I had thought of, but now with nothing to occupy my mind, not even that pain, another more torturous pain returned.

I'd awoken three times here. The first time, I had taken in my surroundings, then cursed Lex. The second was to the metal door of my stone cell opening to a man with the whip. I still didn't understand why they had not asked for information, if we (assuming Snaps was here too) were not here for that purpose, then why? And now I woke up to the sound of footsteps.

They stopped outside of my door, then started again, only not really continuing on. Back and forth they went. Pacing. Only one person would be pacing outside of my door like that, and he was wise to stay on that side too.

As much as I hated him right now, I knew that if he came in here and said three words, I'd forgive him before my heart started to beat again. My poor stupid heart.

But, I knew, as well as he, that he wouldn't or couldn't, maybe both.

"Coward."

It was the first word I'd said aloud here. I didn't yell, my voice was even, but it did make it through the metal.

"I am." And the footsteps grew faint and finally, I was alone in the silence again. Alone with my thoughts and worries and pain.

Was Snaps here too? Where was James? Had he really been relocated or was he in the same boat as me? Why were we here, or was there really a purpose at all? How could he do something like this?!

It was then that I realized that I had not even said his name n my head since first waking up. How very stupid my damn heart was indeed.

Lex's POV

"Coward."

I had heard the word so faintly through the rock and metal, I was hardly sure that it was really here. But what else could it be, my memory blocked out her voice in my mind.

"I am." Was the only answer I could bring myself to say. I walked away after hat. I couldn't do this any longer. I hated myself too much already. I had to do something, and quick.

"Hey, Carter! Where you off to?" One of the other men called.

"I'm going up to the North base for a while." I said, keeping my voice even.

"Blond one finally getting to you?"

I stared at him in amazement for a moment.

"You've been pacing in front of her cell for the last two hours." He explained.

"I just need to get out of here for a few days." I said. 'Hopefully, that will be all it takes to find James.'

The man nodded and returned to the group he had been standing with. I quickly made my way to the surface, our mountain hideout here in the south was partly underground and carved right out of the face of the mountain.

'A few days.' I thought as I drove north. 'That's all I need. I'll find James and we'll come back here and save Kate and Snaps…that is if he doesn't kill me on the spot.'


	35. Chapter 34 No Reason

James sat on his bed, his face in his hands. The past week had been useless. He had found nothing and doubted that he ever would.

He regretted just leaving Snaps there after telling her he loved her, too afraid that she wouldn't share his feelings. How foolish that worry seemed now.

Loud knocking on the door to his hotel room door. James pulled himself to his feet and opened the door without thinking. There stood Lex, looking impatient, among other emotions. He was alone, no Snaps and no Kate.

"Where are Snaps and Kate?" James asked, no, demanded.

"I'll explain on the way. We have to get back to the south, now." Lex said quickly.

"Where are they?!"

"In danger. We have to hurry."

"Explain now." James said, failing to keep his temper in check.

"Fine." Lex snapped. "I work for Ali Shehab. He made sure I was assigned to be your guide when you, Kate, and Snaps arrived here. My mission was to keep you three from finding anything out, but we underestimated you all. So I was told to bring 005 and 006 in and Ali said he would send 007 off to the north. I had no choice. I never –"

But James had heard enough, he punched Lex square in the jaw. Lex stumbled back a couple of steps and his lip began to bleed. That had gone better than he had hoped…

They stared at each other a moment, James with hate and anger, Lex with apology and pleading.

"If they're d –" James began.

"They're not. Ali won't kill them." Lex broke in. 'No, the men are having too much fun beating them.' He added bitterly in his mind. He was slightly proud, neither Kate nor Snaps had cried during all of this. There strength amazed him.

"If you're wrong –"

"I'm not." Lex assured him.

Without another word, James pushed past him and led the way downstairs. When they reached Lex's car, James said, "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you when this is over."

"I don't have one." Lex said. "But for now, I just want Kate to be safe. That's my reason."


	36. Chapter 35 Rescue

James and Lex waited in the shadows outside Ali Shehab's base in south Lebanon. It was just after two in the morning. James had wanted to charge in the moment they had arrived, four days of worry and driving had been too long, but Lex said they had to wait until all the guards were asleep to be safe. This time had been torturous for Lex as well, but for once in the past few days, reason had won in his mind and heart.

"How much longer?" James asked, annoyed. The sooner he saw Snaps and Kate, the better.

Lex checked his watch. "Now. Even the night guards will be asleep at this hour."

They crept along the mountain side to the entrance. Lex was right, the two guards were asleep. Once inside, they continued downward, and after a few moments and many turned, they arrived at a hall that was lined with metal doors.

Lex walked to the end of the hall and stood in front of the last door on the left. Why was it that he was still afraid to go in and face her?

"Open it!" James ordered, and Lex obliged.

The door creaked as Lex pushed it open. There was Kate, chained in the same manner as Snaps, and asleep with her chin resting on her chest. A few cuts on her face were the only visible signed of the hell that she and Snaps had been through.

As Lex and James moved closer to her, Kate began to stir.

Kate's POV

I began to come out of my less-than-peaceful sleep at the sound of footsteps. At first, I thought I was still asleep and dreaming, but after the pain and fatigue returned, I realized I couldn't be. Lex and James, they were really here! I couldn't help but glare at Lex as he kneeled down beside me and unlocked my chains. My arms fell limply at my side at first, but as soon as the feeling and pain returned to them, I punched Lex in the jaw as hard as I could. All be it, that wasn't very hard, but I got my point across.

"You asshole!" I snapped. "How could you do this?! I can't believe that you had the nerve to come with twenty miles of me, let alone into the same room!" Though my words were strong, my vision was blurred by tears that were waiting to spill out.

Lex just stared me right in the eye, the emotional pain that I'd felt since this happened reflected back at me through his deep brown eyes. We stared at each other for a moment where time seemed to stand still, as Lex leaned in, he placed a hand on my cheek and kissed me deeply, and I returned his kiss. I felt a few of the broken pieces of my heart fall back into place.

Our kiss was abruptly ended by James pulling Lex up by the collar of his shirt. Lex didn't seem surprised, but James looked like he was ready to kill Lex then and there. As James dragged him away from me, Lex said his first words to me since the day he'd betrayed us all.

"Kate, I love you." He said them as though he knew James was going to kill him and he wanted those four words to be his last.

They were almost to the door now, Lex wasn't even fighting James.

"James, don't!" The pleading in my voice was clear as I tried to stand on uneasy legs, using the stone wall for support.

James looked at me, horror-struck, while Lex smiled at me and looked relieved.

"Why?!" James asked.

"Because…I love him, too."

Lex freed himself from James' grip and ran back to me, then wrapped his arms around me. I cringed in pain.

"Sorry." Lex mumbled.

James cleared his throat rather loudly. "Mind if we save Snaps now?"

Lex threw his set of keys into James' hand. "Third door down on the other side."

James caught the keys and ran off, and Lex and I followed closely.


	37. Chapter 36 Reunion

Snaps' POV

Snaps' POV

The door opened again, and though I looked asleep, I wasn't really. My eyes were just closed, muscles burning, hair a straggly mess, though still pulled back in a ponytail.

I felt sure it was the sledgehammer, in which case I probably didn't want my eyes open anyway.

"Oh God." I heard a familiar voice, the one I'd been longing to hear for 11 days now. 11 long days.

I pulled my eyes open.

"James?"

And there he was, standing in the doorway, and I almost thought I was dreaming.

But as he ran forward and took my cheeks in his hands, kissing my forehead, my nose, anything he could reach, I knew it was real. He was here.

He furiously unlocked my chains and caught me as I fell forward, holding my head to his chest and stroking my hair. I squeezed my eyes shut as a single tear rolled out of them and down my cheek, landing on his arm.

He brushed his hand down my back and I winced, pulling his hand away quickly. He looked at it, fresh blood shining on his fingers.

"Snaps." He said softly.

"It looks worse than it feels." I said, tottering between the truth and a lie. It was true that his mere presence had eliminated a great deal of the pain.

My eyes flickered to the doorway, where Lex and Kate had just appeared. I was too angry to notice the miniscule trace of happiness on Kate's face. I could only look at Lex and narrow my eyes in hatred, then turn away, retreating back into James' arms.

He turned to look at them as well, a mixture of anger and resentment smoldering in his ice-clear eyes. How I'd missed those eyes.

James stood and helped me to my feet. I only wavered a moment, though his hand on my arm was a great comfort.

We walked out slowly, James no more than an inch behind me the whole way, cursing every now and then. I knew he was looking at my back.

Once we were past the guards, to a place where we could talk, James turned to Lex. He seemed reluctant to speak to him, ashamed that we needed him, I suppose.

"What now?" He asked, voice filled with animosity.

"There's a small jet in the bunker up the corridor." He said cautiously.

I looked between them, wondering just exactly what had happened before I'd gotten out of my cell. Something had, of that I was certain.

"Let's go then."

I slipped my hand into James' as he set off, and he stroked it gently with his thumb as we walked.

When we arrived at the bunker, Lex already knew every security code we needed, as well as how to operate the jet. He got us into the air without any trouble, then set the plane on autopilot.

It was late in the night of December 30, I explained to James and Kate what Ali had said, and Lex confirmed it.

'New Years…' I kept thinking. 'New Years…'

It was an American holiday, but London had found it hard to ignore the celebration that took place across the seas, and we found that we could make considerable money by having a spectacular fireworks showcase at Big Ben and broadcasting it live on television. It had become a tradition, but this year, it was doomed.

We had 25 hours.

25 short hours…


	38. Chapter 37 Return

Kate's POV

Kate's POV

"I don't know about you, Kate." Snaps said, breaking a long awkward silence that had set in between all of us. "But I'm ready to find a first aid kit and patch up our backs."

"Yes." I said, standing up and following her to the back part of the plane, even though I was a little worried about leaving Lex alone with James.

I pulled the curtain that separated the two seating areas of the plane across the opening. We found the first aid kit in the small bathroom at the end of the seats. I offered to patch up Snaps' back first and she had no objections.

"So…" She said, sitting down in one of the seats with her practically destroyed back toward me. I knew my own back could only look worse. "What happened?"

"What do you mean?"

"When they came to rescue you." Snaps explained. "Something had to have happened, or else you wouldn't have let Lex near you and James would've killed him."

"He wanted to." I said quietly, and then sighed as I started my work. "Lex told me he loves me and I told him I felt the same and I punched him." The happiness in my voice was unmistakable.

"He said he loves you and you punched him?"

"Actually, I punched him and called him an asshole, then he told me." I said with a slight laugh.

"Figures." She said.

"There, that should do it." I said, looking at her back. Most (if not all) was covered in gauze and medical tape.

"Thanks. Your turn." Snaps said, standing and putting what was left of her shirt on. I removed mine and sat down.

Now that our backs were all fixed up for the moment, we returned to the main part of the plane. It was no surprise that James and Lex were as far from each other as humanly possible. I sighed and rolled my eyes, Snaps silently walked over to James at the back of the seats. I walked to the front, where Lex was, he smiled at me and gently pulled me into his lap, wrapping his arms around me. I laid my head on his shoulder and he kissed my forehead.

"I'm sorry, Kate." He whispered, and his smile vanished. "I should've thought it through or told you or something. We could've thought of something. I just wasn't prepared for any of this." He smiled a bit. "I lied to you when we first met. I really did think that James was 005 just because he was a guy."

"Yeah, it's always a shock when people find out that half of the Double Os are women." I said, letting my eyes fall closed. "And don't worry about the past, just don't be surprised if James and Snaps hate you the rest of their lives."

"I'll be surprised if they stop hating me." He said. "And speaking of other Double Os, some of Ali's men kidnapped 008 and 009. They're being held at the abandoned warehouse at London's main docks."

I laughed a bit. "Leave it to those two to get themselves kidnapped in their own country. "

"Also," I heard guilt sipping back into his voice, "Ali is planning to bomb MI6 headquarters as well as Big Ben. At the same time."

"Brilliant." I mumbled. "He must have really trusted you to tell you all his plans like that…"

"Well…I was his top agent." Lex said bitterly. "Why else would I be assigned to watch over _three_ Double Os?"

I nodded as I listened to his even breathing. I yawned a few moments later.

"Go ahead and sleep." Lx said. "I doubt you've gotten much in the last eleven days. I'll wake you up when it's time to start landing." He promised.

"All right." I mumbled.

Just before I drifted off in a peaceful sleep, I heard Lex whisper "I love you," and then he kissed me lightly on the lips, but before I could answer him, I was asleep.

Snaps' POV

After my back was patched up, though the ragged T shirt still hung off my shoulders, I came back out into the plane, where James sat in the nearest aisle seat.

I held out my hand to him, and he took it, we passed through the thin curtain meant to separate the two halves of the plane.

We sat in the back row, I by the window, on the inside, he on the aisle. The darkness of the night was comforting, just seeing the sky, even if it was black, was wonderful.

As beautiful as it was, though, I wanted to see James' face more.

When my eyes met his, he was looking at me with an expression that I found unreadable. I smiled at him, though it faded when he didn't return it.

He shook his head. "I'll kill them if I ever find them." He said through gritted teeth. "I can't even look at you and Kate without wanting to go after them."

"So that's what that look meant." I said softly. I laid my head over on his shoulder. "Can't you just forget it for now?" I whispered.

"If you really want me to." He said, placing his arm around my shoulders. "For now."

It felt so good, his touch, and I knew that even if I'd still been in the core of that mountain, I would have felt safe like this.

I had almost fallen asleep there on his shoulder, only the dim voices of Kate and Lex at the front of the plane floating to my ears, the rhythmic breathing of James' muscular chest, rocking my head up and down. Then, James spoke.

"I…I missed you, Snaps. I thought I'd go crazy…and the way I left you like that…I shouldn't have done that to you."

My eyes shot open, in the ecstasy of seeing him again, I had forgotten that I had something important to tell him.

"Leaving me like what?"

"Well…what I – what I said. I can understand if you…if you don't –"

I leaned up and kissed him softly on the lips, closing my eyes. It was a short kiss, but all I needed. I pulled away, taking his other hand in mine and leaning my forehead against his.

"Have I ever told you how much I love you?"

His eyes twinkled, and the corners of his mouth turned up. "No."

"Well…I love you." I breathed.

He kissed me deeply. "I love you, too."

Thirty minutes later, I was stretched across the seat, my head in James' lap. He was gently stroking the bandages on my back with one hand, my hair with the other.

He saw my eyes open.

"Sleep." He said softly. "Nothing can hurt you."

"I know." I yawned, and just before my eyes fell shut, whispered on last time, "You're here."


	39. Chapter 38 Doom Awaits

Snaps' POV

When I opened my eyes again, James was still there, exactly where he had been. I smiled up at him and he leaned down to kiss me gently.

"Perfect timing." He said. "We're just landing."

I yawned again slightly, and then checked my watch. Twelve noon, the 31 of December.

We were now down to twelve hours.

I sat up and put my feet on the floor of the plane. James stood and took my hand, leading me down the aisle to the front.

"How are you feeling?" He asked.

"Much better." I answered.

He smiled warmly as we reached the cockpit. I looked out the window at the familiar sight of an emergency landing airport near the river that ran by Big Ben.

"So, what's the plan?" I asked Kate, who stood behind Lex with her hands on his shoulders as he landed.

"Well, as much as I hate it, we have to go get Dyna and Jack."

"What?!" I exclaimed.

"We have them too." Lex said. "Though I highly doubt that they've gone through what you have."

"Let's hope not." I said, a slight tinge of resentment in my voice. "Where are they?"

"In a warehouse down by the docks."

"All right, then." James said. He turned and went to open the door that led out. "Let's go."

"Can't we just leave them?" I joked.

"No." Kate said, and I turned to her in shock. "We need them to deactivate the bomb that's planted in MI6 headquarters as we speak."

I rolled my eyes. "Great."

"That's what I said." Kate smirked.

Twenty precious minutes later, we had arrived at an abandoned warehouse near the wharf. It didn't take long to follow the traces of classic Double O struggles and find Dyna and Jack bound and gagged in a small office.

Dyna seemed about as happy to see us as we were to see her, which was not at all. She and Jack both wanted a full explanation, but we quickly told them that there was no time.

Since Kate had the most seniority over them, she took great pleasure in ordering them to go back to headquarters, locate and deactivate the bomb, and explain to M what was going on.

I checked my watch again.

We were not down to five hours.

It took at least two and a half to get to MI6 from here, and M wouldn't have time to send a team, it was up to us.

It didn't help that we were four hours from Big Ben ourselves.

We were going to be cutting this dangerously close.

James caught my glance and looked at his own watch.

"Don't worry." He spoke to me, and me alone. "We'll make it."

And with that, we were off again, driving like it was Sunday evening, I suppose no one was in a rush for our impending doom.


	40. Chapter 39 Prayer of Desperation

Snaps' POV

It was 11:45pm, time was about to run out, and the anxiety in the car was thick enough to drink. I had driven, because I was fastest and safest, and James sat beside me, squeezing my hand tightly.

We'd stopped talking hours ago, the reality of the situation setting in, as it always did when we realized how dangerous a mission was. In the end, whether you were a Double O or a five-year-old, it was scary driving right into the one-mile radius of a powerful bomb.

I parked the car as close as I could get for the crowd, and we ran through them urgently, right up to the clock tower and the guards around it. Luckily, they had no idea about our demoted status, and let us pass without question.

It was ten minutes till.

"Who's going in?" Lex asked.

"I will." I started forward, but James jerked me back roughly, shaking his head.

"No."

"You don't know anything about the wires anyway…" Kate mused.

Eight minutes till.

"Someone has to go!" I yelled frantically.

"I will." This time, it was Kate.

Six minutes till.

She started forward, but Lex grabbed her and pushed her back, right into James' arms.

"Don't let her go." He ordered. "I'll be back." He kissed her on the cheek. "I promise."

Then, he sprinted into Big Ben.

Four minutes left to find a needle in a haystack and get it outside.

I couldn't help but start to pray.

Even if it was for him.


	41. Chapter 40 Demise

Kate's POV

"James, let me go!" I pleaded with my brother for what seemed like the millionth time as I tried to break free of his iron grip. Lex had been gone nearly two minutes, and time seemed to be in a hurry tonight, for each second seemed to eat another whole minute of our limited time to stop Ali's plan.

"No, Katie." He said firmly.

"Would I be different if Snaps was in there?" I asked, and he didn't answer. "Is it me or him?"

"Both." James said.

"Snaps, you know you'd go after James." I said, trying to get her to help me.

"Sorry, Kate, but I'm on James' side." She said, truly sympathetic.

"See." James said. "Now listen to reason, and stay put."

"NO." I said, fighting harder than ever to get away.

Another crucial minute passed and finally, Lex emerged with the bomb under his arm, racing toward the shore of the nearby river. I watched him go, still trying to back away from James. I looked up at the clock tower, only one minute left. He was going to make it. I stopped fighting James with that thought comforting me.

Big Ben started to toll midnight as Lex reached the river and threw the bomb in. My eyed went wide with horror as Ali stepped out of the shadows near Lex, as if he had been waiting for him to come.

"James, please!" I yelled as I begged, trying to get to Lex again. James only tightened his grip in reply.

Third Person

"Hello, Carter." Ali said, stepping out of his hiding place.

Lex took a few steps back toward the river.

"I see the men were right, you get too involved in this mission. Got too close to 005 when all you had to do was bring her and 006 to the base."

"Leave Kate out of this."

"I'm afraid I can't. She and the other Double O's will have to be killed quickly if my plan is to be successful." Before Lex could react, Ali pushed him into the river after the bomb.

Big Ben struck midnight just after he hit the water.

Kate's POV

"NO!" I yelled as fire and water shot into the air. People ran away from the scene, yet all I wanted was to go toward it.

"James." Snaps' voice cut through the horror that was filling up my mind. "Let her go!"

After a moment, his grip loosened enough for me to break free. I ran as fast as I could, only pausing when Snaps called my name and threw me her gun. Halfway there, I stopped and took aim at Ali as he walked away smiling. I didn't even hear the shot go off, just saw him look down at his chest where blood was now pouring out of his right lung. He fell to his knees and I raced forward.

Ali looked up at me in shock as he coughed up blood and gasped for breath.

"Do you feel it? The darkness closing in around you? How each breath is more painful than the last?" I said, in a dangerously soft voice. He fell over to the side, unable to remain upright anymore. "Die knowing that I take pleasure in the fact that you are in pain."

I dropped the gun and ran to the river's bank. I was about to jump in and search for Lex, I refused to believe that he –he was- but James and Snaps had caught up with me, and James locked me I his grip yet again.

I felt numb, the pain hadn't set in yet. My newly mended heart hadn't started again yet. But I knew that it would. The numbness was worse, much worse, I couldn't breathe, cry, or do anything but stand there and stare off into the black waters without really seeing them.


	42. Chapter 41 Gone

Kate's POV

Gone. Truly gone.

The week following…New Years…was hell. Pure hell. I don't even remember how I got back to my room at headquarters, but that's when the tears finally came and I'm not sure when they stopped.

I laid in my bed, only getting up to eat when I realized I was hungry, but I never left my room. I thanked God that Snaps and James knew me well enough not to come and check on me.

Pain. It had set into the cracks of my re-broken heart and haunted my dreams, though I never recalled ever falling asleep until I woke up in a cold sweat and tears. These were never-ending tears, pouring from my eyes.

It finally set in that he was really gone and that's when the tears stopped. Who knew they were fueled by hope and not loss?

Gone. He was truly gone.


	43. Chapter 42 Be You Again

Snaps' POV

The week after Big Ben...was somehow the best week of my life. I felt guilty, because I knew that Kate was going through a pain I had never felt, and I couldn't help.

But James and I found it impossible to put our lives on hold, and somehow, I didn't think that Kate would have wanted that anyway.

We had waited so long for each other, and that week was our reward. I wanted to spend all the time I had with him, so I did. Whether we walked downtown or just lay beside each other sleeping in my room, we were happy. Happier than we had ever been or ever would be.

But as it came to a close, I realized that it was time to go to Kate. She needed me as well, even if she didn't realize it.

I explained to James that I was going to spend Saturday with Kate and he understood immediately.

I went out to the nearest store and bought a huge carton of ice cream, and then made my way to Kate's door. I knocked gently, hoping that she was awake to hear it.

"It's open," he moisture-thick voice answered.

that was the first sign she was out of it, she hadn't locked her door.

I came in, sighing at the sight of her room. It was blatantly obvious that she'd been nowhere but the bed and the freezer. Three empty cartons were on her nightstand, and she was surrounded by her tangled covers and her pillows.

I walked over and sat down next to her, placing the fresh carton of Ben and Jerry's in her hands, her favorite flavor. Chocolate Therapy.

She looked up at me curiously.

"Your usual rate of depression-induced sugar intake is statistically proven to be an average of three cartons per week. Last time I was here, there were only three cartons in your freezer."

She smiled weakly. "Thanks."

"Any time," I shrugged.

She sat the ice cream next to her without opening it, and then sighed and lay back in her pillows.

"This is going to sound stupid, but...are you okay?" I asked.

She looked like she would keep her composure for a second, but then two tears rolled down her cheeks. "No."

I pulled her into a sisterly hug as she covered her face with her hands.

"No," she repeated. "I want him back so much."

"I know," I whispered softly, knowing this was the best way for her to move on. "But Kate...you do know...I mean, you realize that-"

"He's not coming back?" Her shoulders shook, but I detected a slight nod. "Yes."

I was almost crying myself. Kate had always been stronger than I, seeing her so upset and hurt terrified the hell out of me, but I knew it would be no help if I cried. So, I pushed her back and looked her in the eye.

"Listen to me, Kate," I said, "I know you don't think that this will go away, but it will. I"m not going to tell you that you'll find someone else, because I don't know. But you're never going to find anyone else if you don't try. And you're never going to be anyone if you stay in this room for the rest of your life." I couldn't help it, but my voice broke. "I know you want Lex back...but we want Kate back."

She looked at me in surprise, and I knew that she hadn't thought that was what I would say. She nodded ever so slightly, and I got up to leave.

Just as I reached the door, I heard her voice from behind me.

"Shooting range tomorrow?"

I turned to look at her. "Bright and early."


	44. Chapter 43 Always

Snaps' POV

It was a quiet Monday and I lay in my bed, just waking up to the early morning light shining through my window. I had left it closed the night before, but now I saw the snow had melted, probably the last of the winter snow for London.

There came a knock at my door and I reluctantly rose to open it. I already knew who it was.

James leaned down to kiss me as soon as the door was open, a long and passionate kiss, like he would never be able to do it again.

When he finally pulled away, I looked up at him with wide eyes.

"What was that for?" I asked.

"Just because I love you," he answered.

I smiled. He was so irresistible. "I love you, too."

He looked down at his feet, but that flicker of a moment in which he was acting strange was over in even less than a second. He looked up at me again, smiling, though i found it hard to smile back. His abnormal behavior was...scaring me.

He led me over to my bed, where he pulled me down onto the soft mattress in front of him, his arms wrapped around me.

We lay there a moment, and I couldn't relax, couldn't calm down. I was too afraid, something was wrong.

James buried his nose in my hair, breathing deeply, and I stroked his arm softly.

"James, I'm not going anywhere," I whispered. "You're acting like you'll never see me again..."

He was silent and I froze in terror, and then turned over to face him. There was an unbearable expression on his face, though I wasn't sure I wanted to know what it meant. My voice broke.

"James? What are you thinking?"

"Snaps...we can't be together."

My mouth fell open in shock, but somehow, I'd known all along that this day would come. For a moment, I tried to talk, but I couldn't. Then, a sob escaped my throat and I closed my eyes, trying to hold it in, but the pain in my chest was too much.

He pulled me close, trying to be a comfort, but it was hard for him as well.

"Why?" I whispered, even though I knew the answer. "I can take care of myself, James. Please, let me stay with you...please..." I was begging him, clinging to him by the weak threat that had gotten us together in the first place.

"No, Snaps," he said, clinging to me with equal fierceness. "There's a reason relationships are looked down upon in MI6..."

"Yes, relationships with commoners, between a Double O and an outsider. Those are dangerous because they can't protect themselves, but I can! I know everything you know, if not more. I'm...I'm your bloody superior!"

"They will still use you against me. We distract each other. It would only be a matter of time before one of us made a mistake, or we put each other before the objective. If we let ourselves become a couple, we put everything at stake. We'll end up dead. Or worse." He looked down, taking a breath. "It's hard enough. Doing what we do. And I love you too much to lose you."

"But not enough to work for this, to risk being together?" I asked shrilly. I pushed away from him. "I love you enough to risk my life, but you don't love me enough to let me?" I sobbed openly.

"You know I love you more than anything!" He said furiously. "Don't make this harder than it already is."

I put my arms around myself, the tears pouring off my cheeks. "It's already too hard..."

He pulled me close to him again. "I'm not leaving you, I'll be right here, I'll never leave you behind, or love anyone else. This isn't the end of us." He kissed my neck softly, and I thought I felt a tear on his cheek, though it could easily have been mine. We were sharing a sorrow. "And someday..."

He stopped, but the promise hung in the air, a small hope to cling to, even if it wasn't as substantial as having him in my arms.

"I'll wait," he said softly, a solemn vow in a world of uncertainty. "I'll wait until we're both done, when there's nothing holding us back, and we can leave this place. Be and do whatever we want." He kissed my cheek once more. "And I'll always love you."


	45. Epilogue

Kate's POV

Time passed, and soon, my back healed, as did Snaps'. But the scars remained, much like the ones I could feel on my heart. M had made sure that I was "stable" enough to return to my work.

Everyone at MI6 seemed to notice the change in me, even I had. And no matter how much I smiled, my eyes were always sort of a deep sorrowful blue. Now and again, I woke up with tears in my eyes, but with Snaps and James there to help me, I slowly became somewhat like myself again.

James and Snaps remained as close as they thought was safe and Dyna and Jack did the same.

Life went back to normal, or as normal as life could be for Double O's. We continued to work in pairs and go on missions as usual.

We waited in the dark shadows of an alleyway. Snaps and James were holding hands for a few moments longer before it was time to go.

James kissed her on the cheek and I couldn't help but think of Lex for a moment. I looked up at the stars, shining down on us, yet it was a new moon tonight. Thankfully.

"Ready?" James asked us.

"Always," Snaps answered with a smirk.

"Yep," I said, smiling slightly, but I mumbled, "and never."

We all cocked our guns and headed off into the darkness, the life of shadows. Running, hiding, living, dying...but the living. That's the important part. Right?

The End

A Note to Our Loyal Readers: Hello all! We really hope that you enjoyed the final chapters of "Always and Never," and we apologize for the (literally) years it took to finish posting it. Like "Walk Two Sides," these chapters were written at the same time as all of the other chapters (approximately six years ago), I just didn't take the time to type them up until now, after a long and arduous search for our hard copies. However, we are pleased to announce that we will once again be combining our efforts to write a sequel to this fic, which should prove to be even more epic than the first installment. Keep your eyes open for updates and thanks for your loyal reading over the years!

P.S. Remember to check our our individual accounts, which play host to more current fanfictions including Fruits Basket, True Blood, Twilight, Harry Potter and more! My sister can be found under the username Liz08, and I can be found under annemarieknight. Thanks again!


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